Better Than Revenge
by SilverLiningsGirl
Summary: Annabeth is a loser. You know, that kind with one friend and no love life. Not to mention her bully, Percy Jackson who just won't leave her alone. Then why is he suddenly all around her, begging for her attention and affection? Maybe because of a bet he made that he could get her to fall in love with him. Will he succed? Or will he fall first? Percabeth! Read & Review
1. What did I do wrong?

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When I got up that morning, and when my feet touched the cold floor tiles, I felt like I always felt in the morning- brain dead. Usually, I'm a pretty sharp girl, and quite smart actually, but in the morning all that smarttitude goes away.

If I had only known what life had in store for me, I never would have gotten out of bed that morning.

As I trudged down the stairs of my family's old two story house, everything looked normal. My two twin half brothers were playing in the living room, watching Pokémon, and my step-mother, Susanne, was in the kitchen, rushing around and making breakfast. She and I didn't really get on well most of the time, but there were moments when I felt really lucky to have her.

Now wasn't one of those moments.

They just made so much noise, I could feel my head pulsing as if it was about to fall off. It was rainy outside, and I had a mean headache whenever it rained this heavily. I groaned when I sat on one of the chairs and let my head fall on the table. It landed with a loud thud and I heard Susanne chuckle.

"Headache?"

"You have no idea." I groaned. Then she brought a big plate of eggs and pancakes in front of me and I immediately felt better. The delicious smell got into my nose and I couldn't wait for the two snot-faced idiots to join us at table, I started to attack those pancakes without a declaration of war.

When I ate everything there was, I realized it was time to go to school. The simple thought made me groan again. You see, I am just your typical high school loser. You know what I'm talking about. That kind of people that have only one friend, sit in the corner of the cafeteria and haven't been on a date since… I can go to hell if I remember.

And then there was Perseus Jackson and his squad of stupid. They kind of ruled the school, and were keen on destroying every girl that didn't fall at their feet. I still remember the day Luke asked me to go out with him. I turned him down in a second, since he was kind of the runner-up for the biggest jerk, behind Percy. Luke just smiled at my rejection and walked away. The following day I found a color bomb that exploded over me and everything in my locker when I opened it. I never got those books cleaned.

Ever since then, Percy and his squad did the best they could to make every day at school miserable for me and Thalia. She was that one best friend I was talking about. She kind of got the same treatment I did. Nico Di Angelo, Percy's "second in command" asked her to be his girlfriend, the dude had a mean crush on her, but she didn't want to get involved with them, so she said no. Though she got off better than I did, I presume it's because Nico still slobbers every time he sees her.

I heard Thalia honk in front of my house and I darted out after grabbing my back pack. I quickly hopped into Thalia's Chevy Impala that she called her 'baby.' She was crazy about that car, she even asked me to take off my shoes if it rained outside, so I wouldn't get the mud in. Okay, she didn't ask me, she ordered me to do so. And since Thalia was scary, I went along with it.

"Hey." I greeted her and she just nodded in response. I didn't know if she realized I got in or if she was just nodding along with Green Day that was blasting from the speakers. I think if it ever came down to me and Billy Joe Armstrong, I would be so screwed.

"Thalia!" I yelled and waved my hand in front of her face. She just frowned at me and I knew it was the best thing I would get from her until at least second period. Like me, Thalia wasn't a morning person. She needed her dosage of black coffee or heads fell off.

We drove in comfortable silence. Well as silent it could be while Armstrong sang about 'killing the DJ.'I hummed along with the song since Thalia always listened to them. I knew almost every song from them. I even dozed off when I felt Thalia wheel her way into the school parking lot.

Good High school was actually just a big building made entirely of bricks. It was like a giant block a kid decided to make from leggos. I sighed every time I saw it, I always dreamed of doing something different when I grew up to be an architect.

Thalia and I walked down the hallway. Me, with my back slouched and head hung low, and Thalia, head held high as her boots click-clacked against the linoleum floor. It was the best thing of being her friend, Thalia didn't care about anything and she didn't take crap from anyone.

I always wanted to be like her.

I had chemistry first period, so I said goodbye to Thalia and went into the room that was my worst nightmare. School has started a few weeks ago, and today we were supposed to get our partners assigned to us. I shivered at the thought; last year I got Grover, who I had no problem with, but then Percy got to him and got him to join their group. You can only imagine how fun it was working with a guy that was said to spill acid in your face. He didn't try, thank you God, but I could imagine Percy telling him to do it. Like the dude from Godfather.

The class started to pile in, and I noticed everyone sat far away from me. I understood them. Nobody wanted to deal with a girl that was the main target of Percy's for quite some time now. It was so much easier just to stay away from me, or even better, humiliate me in public.

Percy and his main girl-toy, Rachel, walked into the room. Like in those stupid chick flicks, everyone went silent. I felt a bit rebel-ish, so I coughed loudly. I could hear some girls gasp and a few guys snickered when Percy's green eyes glared at me. If looks could kill, I would already be in hell playing tag with Percy's intelligence and Rachel's brain.

Yes, I am calling them both stupid.

I didn't even have the time to realize what was happening when I felt someone sit in the chair next to me. I first thought it was another loser and one of Percy's many victims, so I didn't even bother to look in their way. I know misery loves company, but that was just too ironic for my taste. But when I heard loud gasps and chatter so loud I couldn't' even think straight, I finally turned my head. In the chair, sitting next to me, was Percy Jackson, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

What in the world did I do that was so wrong for God to punish me in this way?

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**New story! I really hope you'll like it. Please review and tell me what you think, because I have big things in store for this story. Oh yes, big things...**

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	2. The bet

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**Percy POV**

If there was one thing I couldn't stand, it was an alarm clock.

My mom barged into my room the second I turned it off. I swear, for such a classy woman like her, knocking was an unknown term. She came and stripped the blanket off of me. I immediately protested, but like always, she got the last word in everything.

"Come on Percy! I have to be at work in one hour, so I have to put the laundry in. Laundry that you will put out to dry when you get back from school. Understand?" she pointed her finger at me. I nodded involuntarily; the woman was seriously scary when she wanted to be.

"Yes ma'am."

"Good boy. Now go eat, breakfast is on the table." She instructed and disappeared in the bathroom. I sighed; it was 'family time' again with Gabe. Dear God, how I wanted to sell that guy to Columbian drug lords.

As always, he sat at the table, reading the New Yorker and drinking coffee. A big plate filled with bacon and blue eggs was next to him. When he saw me, he would usually fold the newspaper and then start his usual routine of jabbing at me until I exploded - after which I would get grounded.

Life was amazing. Not.

"Morning." I mumbled when I sat down and started to eat my breakfast. He snorted from beside me.

"You can't even say bon appetite before you start eating, huh punk?" he asked me. I could immediately feel my blood start to boil. I wanted to punch him, or at least get my mom to dump his sorry ass. A woman like her should not be with a guy like Gabe. Smelly, filthy, selfish junk of a man.

"I didn't even know you knew how to say bon appetite." I snapped back at him, right when my mom entered the room. Her timing was, as always, the worst possible. She dropped the laundry basket and flicked me on the head.

"Perseus! Apologize this instant or I'm taking your phone away." She commanded and I could feel the smirk on Gabe's face widen. I gritted my teeth as I mumbled out an excuse. Gabe snickered and continued to read his paper. He knew it would always be like this; he jabs at me, I blow at him and then mom, as much as she hates it, blows at me.

When I heard a loud honk come from the street, a signal that Nico was here, I never felt luckier to have him as my best friend. All the other guys, they were cool and everything, they also worshipped me, which I liked, but they weren't Nico. Nico was the guy I could tell anything, and I knew he wouldn't look at me any other way. He was just as screwed up as I was.

I flew into his car with the biggest desire to get away from here. He knew the routine; the second I sat in, he would start the car, even before I closed the door.

When he finally parked in our usual spot, I saw his eyes dart toward the place Thalia usually parked her car. It was ridiculous how much Nico like that girl. I mean, she was pretty and everything, but there was nothing special about her. She was a loser with a big ego. Speaking of losers, let's not forget to mention her best friend, a girl I officially dubbed the biggest loser and the black sheep of our generation. Sometimes I felt bad for screwing with her, but it was just too much fun.

I bumped Nico with my shoulder, to get him to get out of his trance and utter disappointment when he saw that Thalia already went inside. He rolled his eyes at me and tried to act cool, but I saw that he rubbed his palms with his fingers, a habit of his he only practiced when he was disappointed or desperate about something. That something was usually Thalia.

"Percy, my man!" Luke came from my left when Nico and I were going towards our lockers. He put his arm around me which I found repulsive and, since he was unusually blonde and tanned, a bit too Californian for my taste. Nico gritted his teeth from my right. He couldn't stand Luke for all he was worth. Luke was the main reason Thalia was among the 'tortured' ones. He made Nico ask Thalia out, or he was going to announce that Nico was head over heels with on the school web page. She turned him down, as expected, and was getting the treatment ever since.

"What do you want Luke?" he was a part of our group before, but now he's just an annoying jackass that none of us could stand. He always went behind our backs and got us in crap-load of trouble. I got suspended twice because of him.

"I was just going to ask you if you see that Chase girl over there." He said and pointed at Annabeth. She was walking hurriedly to class, chemistry if I'm not mistaken, since it was my first period too, and we had almost all of our classes together.

I'm not gonna lie. Annabeth was hot. She had long legs and curly blonde hair that fell down her back. I don't know if she wore any make up, not that care anyway, but even if she did, it was very natural. Add those grey eyes that look like they would strike at you any second and you get a freaking atom bomb. I bet if I didn't torture her, she would be one of the most asked-out girls in Goode High.

It was her personality that ruined her. At least that's what I think.

"What about her?"

"She's fine, don't you think?" he asked me, dead serious. I wanted to laugh, but hearing it come from his mouth just made me angry. Once I again I felt the back of my neck warm up, like it always does when I'm pissed off at someone.

"Whatever." I shrugged and pretended not to care. But yeah, I thought she was hot. I don't think there was a guy, or a girl for that matter, in this school that didn't find her hot.

"I bet you couldn't get her." He said all of a sudden, and my head whipped towards him. He was leaning against a locker, his hands stuffed in his pocket, a gleam in his eyes and a smirk on his face. A smirk I wanted to punch off, oh, so badly.

"What are you talking about Castellan?"

"I bet she would never go for a guy like you. You know she hates your guts, right?" he pushed himself off the lockers and got into my face. I smirked at him for once, I felt really confident when it came to the girl department. Every girl in this school knew who I was and wanted me to even talk to them.

"You know I can get any girl in this school without blinking."

"Oh yeah? Then I propose a bet." He said.

"Shoot." I could never turn down a bet. Call it my worst flaw, but I was too prideful.

You have to make Annabeth fall in love with you by… spring break. If you lose, which you will, I get your place on the school swimming team and… get to humiliate you in front of the entire school in any way I find appropriate." Okay, I did not see that coming. I thought about it and Luke stuck his hand out. Nico didn't say anything; he just stared between Luke and me. I bet he thought I was out of my mind, agreeing to give Luke my spot as the school captain on the swim team. Swimming was practically my life, the greatest thing I ever achieved and was proud of it.

"And when I win, which I will, I get your car and you will pay for my gas for the whole junior year." I said. I was happy with my terms. Luke had a Lamborghini - a sleek black ruler among cars that I couldn't wait to sit in once I win it.

Luke laughed and we shook hands. He started to walk away but then turned around to face me. "Good luck big boy. And to give you an actual chance with her, I'll give you time until the end of spring break. Ta-ta idiots!" he waved at us like we were little kids and then disappeared behind a corner.

Nico stepped in front of me, and then punched me in the gut. I crouched down in pain while he looked at me. He seemed seriously pissed. His eyes stared at me and I felt almost as if he was trying to make me disappear.

"Bad idea Percy. A very, very bad idea."

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**And now we know how Percy made the bet. In the next chapter is his first attempt to get close to Annabeth ;) Does anyone have an idea how? I bet you'll never guess :D**

**Special thanks to MegJackson, PjAcTsKg, allen r, luv2write12234, fanficrulz1 and OtakusRule for reviewing my first chapter! Cookies to you guys :) Also thanks so everyone who reviewed, favorited or subscribed!**

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	3. Needle in the heart

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**Percy POV**

I thought about how to approach Annabeth without making it too obvious. Maybe I could pull her to a halt in the middle of the hallway or jump in front of her at lunch. Yeah, and then you can write her a love poem and write her name in the sky, Percy you idiot. I needed something that seemed natural.

And then I saw her rushing into the chemistry classroom and a bulb appeared above my head. We had to pick partners today. Bingo.

Sadly, my plans were interrupted when Rachel, my 'girlfriend', clung on my arm and didn't let go until we entered the room. Nico rolled his eyes before he went for math. I think it became his favorite subject since Thalia transferred into it a last year.

I saw that Annabeth was sitting alone like I expected, seeing as I made sure last year that she didn't have any real fun with Grover. It may seem mean but I… I have my reasons.

I thought about it for a second before I untangled my hand from Rachel's and went to sit next to the blonde. I heard people gasp and almost immediately start to talk. I bet that by the end of the day, this would be the main subject of every conversation.

Annabeth first didn't realize I sat next to her, so I just waited for her to turn around. When she did, her reaction was different from anything than I had expected. I thought she was going to scream, bulge her eyes out or something, but she did something I wouldn't have expected in a million years.

She laughed.

**Annabeth POV**

When I saw him sitting next to me, I broke out in a fit of laughter without any reason. Just the idea of him coming anywhere near me made me sick and made me laugh at the same time. Percy looked at me like I had gone crazy, which was probably right. But I just couldn't stop laughing. Soon, the only thing heard in the whole room was me laughing like a maniac.

When the teacher walked in, I still chuckled under my breath, unable to control it. Percy dug his books out of his bag, and I started laughing again.

"What's so funny?" he whispered under his breath so the teacher wouldn't hear him.

"I… didn't think you owned any books. Or knew how to read." I started to laugh again and I finally caught the teacher's attention. Too bad it was Mrs. Dodds, the one person I prayed wouldn't ever look at me. She was the scariest teacher in Goode, and almost any student feared her. Her snake-like eyes landed on me and she sneered lightly.

"Miss Chase, do you think you can share the object of your amusement with the entire class? I would love it if we all could laugh." She said and walked in front of me. I gulped; suddenly I didn't find anything funny. Percy coughed from beside me and just when I thought he was going to get me a talk with the principal, he actually said something worth hearing.

"It's my fault Mrs. Dodds." He said and I could feel my eyes pop out of my head. He was actually defending me. Percy Jackson was defending me in front of the entire class.

"Oh?" she asked, but her eyes were still on me.

"Yeah, I made her laugh. It's not Annabeth's fault. If anyone needs to be punished, it's me." He said. At this point, I was so freaked out I didn't say anything; I just stared at him like he had grown a second head. He noticed me looking at him and winked at me, which creeped me out even more. I pinched my hands nonchalantly, hoping to wake up from thins nightmare in which Percy defended me in front of a teacher that was about to chew my head off.

"Very well then. I don't want to hear another word out of you two." She choked out between gnawing at her teeth. I was so scared I couldn't think straight and I barely registered Percy when he moved closer and mutter 'Are you okay?' under his breath. I just nodded; my hair bouncing up and down.

"Today class, we are going to mix a little bit of anatomy, biology and chemistry. We are going to analyze a blood sample from each and every one of you, and then we'll see who has the… best blood in this class. Valdez! Go into the supply closet and bring the needles out." She instructed and I could feel my blood turn to ice. Not needles, anything but needles!

I think Percy saw the change in my attitude, because before I had my head hung low, and back hunched, like always. Now my back was completely straight, mainly because I was frozen and couldn't bring it to its former position. I noticed him looking at me, but I didn't care. All I could think about was the needle that was about to pierce my skin and- oh God, I think I'm going to be sick.

"Your partner is to slowly pierce through the top layer of the skin, drew the blood and then has to clean it with a cotton swab. Valdez! Where are those needles?!" she screeched at Leo, who was running back, carrying a bundle of needles in his hands.

"Here, here."

"Very well. Divide them around the class." She commanded and wrote on the board which page we have to open. I quickly opened my book with shaky hands. Percy was still looking at me. He seemed too both have fun and pity me at the same time. Hey, it's not my fault I can't even look at my own blood. Weirdly, I could handle someone else's, but never my own.

"Percy went to wash his hands and when he came back, he took a needle in his hands. I refused to give him my hand, which caused us to start fighting. We stopped only when Mrs. Dodds threw her car keys at us. Percy started to laugh and I couldn't help to break out in a laugh as well.

But then he grabbed my hand, and I remembered our assignment. Percy's hands were rough and gently at the same time, almost like he was using a hand crème. I had a feeling he did. He turned my hand around and pressed the needle on my index finger.

"Sorry about this." He mumbled and pressed the needle into my skin. I felt the room start to spin once it went through my skin and blood started to surface. I saw red dots all around the room, and my vision was blurry. I felt sick and had a feeling I was about to puke, like always.

Still, I tried to cover it up because Percy was looking at me intently. I think he realized I had a phobia of blood and needles. He reached out and grabbed my other hand, the one that wasn't bleeding. It was only then I realized I started falling off my chair.

Percy sprung on his feet, and caught me before I hit the ground. I heard some people around the room yell something about blood; I think more of them were in the same situation I was.

"Annabeth! Oh God, come on!" Percy yelled into my face. I wanted to slap him for screaming in my face, but I couldn't lift my hand up.

"Take her to the infirmary Jackson." I faintly heard Mrs. Dodds voice. Percy pulled me by the hands.

"Can you stand up?" he asked me and I shook my head quickly, though it only made me more nauseated. There was no way for me to even talk, let alone walk. Percy crouched down to my level and planted his hand under my knees. His other hand went behind my back and before I could even protest, he was carrying me bridal style.

I wanted to say something, protest in some way, but my head felt too heavy, so I just pressed it to his chest and prayed to God this embarrassment would be over soon. I breathed in his scent. Percy smelled like sea, fresh and overwhelming. His scent completely enveloped me and made me think just a little more clearly.

I rocked back and forth as Percy walked down the stairs and through the hallways. The infirmary was a little further away from the school courtyard, which meant many students who had botany would see us. Great.

Percy kicked the infirmary door open with his foot, and the nurse jumped in her seat.

"Oh for the love of God! Perseus, what did you do?" Maria Di Angelo, Nico's mom if I'm not mistaken, scowled at him. Percy placed me down on the bed, not so gently, and raised his hands up in defense.

"Hey, I did nothing wrong! It's not my fault she's afraid of blood!" he yelled and sat on the chair next to the bed. Maria brought an ice pack and placed it on my forehead, and I instantly felt much better. I even had enough strength to frown at him.

"I am not." I managed to squeeze out. Percy sent me a 'are-you-kidding-me-look' and I shut my mouth. He smirked at me as he adjusted the ice pack.

"Sure you're not Chase." He said and made himself comfortable in the chair. He took his hoodie off and placed it on my bed. He sat down and took his phone out of his pocket, making me stare at him with wide eyes. Something was very wrong. I could feel it in every cell of my body. They screamed at me for even letting him near me, like a defense mechanism.

"You're not going back to class?" I asked him. I could hear the disbelief and surprise in my own voice.

"There are better things to do here."

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**Hahahaha dun dun dunnnnn. Didn't see that coming did you?**

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	4. Okay, explanation

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He was so weird. Yesterday, he barely spared me a look. Today, Percy carried me to the infirmary and then kept me company while I waited for the room to stop spinning. Thalia came rushing in after second period, and then stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Percy tapping something on his phone. She opened and closed her mouth like a fish, before she got her act together.

She shooed him out in a minute, and when we were left alone, she sat on the bed next to me.

"Spill." She commanded me.

I sighed and sat up higher, "We had chemistry and we had to do an assignment where the partner would get the blood running."

Thalia rolled her eyes at me, but I could tell she was worried. "With a needle?" she asked me, somewhat sympathetic.

"Yeah."

"Ugh, we did that stupid assignment last week. But wait, why was Percy your partner? Was he assigned to you?" she asked, her eyebrows rising to her bangs. I gulped; I really didn't want to tell her about the sudden 'change' in Percy's behavior. But since I had no choice, I swallowed the lump in my throat and started singing like a bird.

"He came and… sat down by himself." Thalia's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

"Did he say something to you Annabeth? Cause if he did, I will stuff his face into his-"

"NO! No, he was actually… nice I guess." I admitted and now she just seemed surprised. Soon, the look was replaced by suspicion. She scrunched her eyebrows and whacked me over the head.

"Hey!" I protested.

"You can't trust him."

"Wha-" she tightly gripped my arms and pulled me closer to her, so that I was staring at her electric blue eyes, that were now a darker shade since she was angry.

"Annabeth, listen to me. You can't believe anything he says. Anything at all. I don't care which infirmary or hospital he takes you even if you have internal bleeding; guys like Percy only do nice things when they get something out of them. Understand?" Thalia whisper-yelled in my face. I thought about how I've had it enough with people doing that. First Percy, now Thalia.

"Thalia, what would Percy get out of taking me to the infirmary?"

"I don't know. But you have to promise me something." She said, dead serious. I rolled my eyes, why was she making such a big deal about this? Percy did what anyone would do in his situation. No matter how awful person he was, he helped a person in need.

"What do I have to promise?"

"That no matter what happens, you won't trust Percy Jackson."

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The rest of the day went by in a blur. I was in the infirmary until fourth period, along with Thalia, until Mr. D, our principal, came and made us go to class. Thalia and I walked slowly. On our way to literature, I bumped into someone. I looked up and saw it was Nico. He smiled at me but I could see his eyes were dying to move from me to Thalia. I smirked; I couldn't wait until the day Thalia finally gave Nico a chance. I think he was the kindest in their group. He was a pretty decent guy, ever since his sister, Bianca, died in a car accident a few years ago.

I think his sudden change of attitude made Thalia fall for him in the first place.

Speaking of her, she was curled up behind me, pretending she was texting someone. I rolled my eyes; she was so childish, and not able to face her problems.

"Hey Nico." I greeted him. He was probably the only guy in this school that talked to me and who I liked talking to. He was a nice guy; I have no idea why he put up with Percy for all these years.

"Hey. So Annabeth, I wanted to talk to you about something." I nodded and we walked away, leaving Thalia to nervously tap her foot on the floor in the hallway. Before we turned around a corner, Nico turned around and looked at my best friend.

"Hey Thalia?" her head snapped up and I grinned to myself, "see you." He said simply and smiled. Thalia took a deep breath and a long pause before she said something.

"See you." she said and ran off in an opposite direction.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" I asked Nico. We were in a deserted hall, but I could still hear people in the classrooms, chattering and yelling. Nico leaned back against a wall and stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"I… I heard something today. I just wanted to give you a heads up." He said, but he refused to look at me. I knew whatever he wanted to tell me, if it was for my own good, was because of Thalia.

"What did you hear?"

"I… I heard Percy and Luke, they were making a-"

"Hey guys!" Percy flew in from nowhere and bumped into Nico, so the poor guy went flying off the wall, since he was only supporting himself with one leg. Nico shot Percy a dark look when he finally recollected himself.

"Perce, what are you-"

"I heard you talking and just wanted to say hi." Percy said. He tried to make it seem careless, but I heard the implication in his voice. Nico shook his head stubbornly and Percy almost growled at him. I just stood there, moving my head from Percy to Nico, trying to keep up.

"Well we're gonna go. Bye Annabeth, hope you're okay!" Percy yelled after he threw his hand over Nico's shoulders and almost dragged him out of the hall.

"Wait! Nico, what were you going to tell me?" I yelled after them. I didn't care that everyone could hear me. Percy just forced a smile in my direction and waved his hand. He mouthed a sentence that was so wrong, so fake I could feel it. Percy mouthed one of the biggest lies I have ever heard in my life, only I didn't know it back then.

"I'm sure it's nothing important."

**Percy's POV**

"What were you thinking? Nico!" I yelled at him after I dragged him to the men's room. Before I started talking I checked every stall, I didn't need people knowing about my bet. Nico pushed me off after we walked into the bathroom.

"Percy, I won't be a part of this. You know what happened to Bianca!" he yelled in desperation and I stopped. I turned around to face him, he had a look on his face that made him look like he's about to burst into tears. I sighed. This was a touchy subject, one we didn't talk about that much.

"I know man. But this won't end that way. Okay, I swear. I won't let it go that far." I promised him but Nico whipped his head around. He looked furious.

"Won't let it go that far? Percy, you made a bet on getting a girl to fall in love with you! It's not like getting her to buy you lunch! Bianca was in love Percy! She was in love too and look what happened!" he yelled. His face was red and his fists clenched. I just waited for him to punch me in the face.

Okay, explanation. Two years ago, Bianca, Nico's older sister, fell in love with this guy called Emerson. He got her to become obsessed with him and all she did was thought about him. She was crazily in love, and no one could say anything against it. Not even Nico. Then, at the night of her prom, she caught him with another girl in the girl's bathroom. She was crushed when he told her he was only with her because he was bored. He completely broke her and left her like that before he went off to make out with that other girl.

Bianca was so desperate that she ran out, got into her car and drove off. I don't know how it happened; all I know is that she didn't see where she was heading because of the rain that was falling heavily that night. A drunken car driver and she collided, and she died on the spot.

Nico was inconsolable. I remember him crying for days sometimes, he was so depressed he didn't talk to anyone for three months. And it was all because of a guy that broke Bianca's heart.

Nico sighed, he was calmer now. "Look Percy, I don't care. But when you fall for that girl, and when she breaks your heart after she finds out, don't come to me. I'll pretend I don't know you." He spat out and walked out of the bathroom, leaving me to stand there with my mouth open wide.

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**Both Nico and Thalia are pretty smart, don't you think? heheheh ;)**

**Anyway, I've been getting PM's and reviews in which you guys tell me that you love the story and that it's different from the rest. I just wanted to say I love you and I'm grateful for you, my small, but strong, fan army. I know this isn't the most popular story on FF, but I like writing it and your opinion means a lot to me :D**

**Hope you liked this chapter, if you did, review and tell me! **


	5. A or B

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I don't think that in all of our years of friendship has Nico avoided me. Except when Bianca died of course. After he left the bathroom, he pretty much used up all his day in making sure he didn't have to talk to me. He ducked and ran around the corner whenever he saw me. He was so desperate to get away from me that at one point he actually grabbed Thalia and dragged her out of the cafeteria.

When I got home, I saw that my mom was still at work and remembered I had to put the laundry out for it to dry. I put my earphones in and got to work, when I heard somebody ring the doorbell. I quickly organized the clothes and hurried to open the door.

Rachel stood on my doorway with her hands on her hips, a pose she only made when she was angry at me for some reason. Only this time I haven't done anything. Usually I was guilty for flirting with other girls or for hanging out with Rachel's ex boyfriends. And trust me; she had a lot of them.

"Hey Rach." I greeted her and leaned in to kiss her but she ducked under my arm and went into the apartment.

"Well okay…" I said awkwardly and closed the door.

Rachel stood in the middle of the room, with her hands still on her hips. She looked like she was about to blow her top off. I smiled at her, hoping it would ease whatever I did wrong. I seriously couldn't remember anything, no matter how much I tried.

"Is something wrong?" I asked her and she huffed and brushed of her hair from her face.

"Yes, there's something wrong. The fact you carried that good-for-nothing loser out of our chemistry classroom today and then ignored me for the rest of the day!" she yelled. I couldn't help to roll my eyes; Rachel loved turning everything into a drama movie.

"Babe, chill. I carried her to the infirmary because… well, she was sick. And the whole ignoring you thing is so not true. I got into a fight with Nico and tried to talk to him. He was actually the one hiding from me. You don't really think I would run away from you?" I pouted at her. Rachel's face softened like it always did when I made the puppy dog face.

"Oh Percy, you're right! I just thought that you may be moving on from me to that loser." She said and hugged me tightly. She was short and skinny, but when she hugged me she literally made me lose my breath. I stood there, hugging her in a weird position while she snuggled herself into me. This whole thing with Rachel has been so weird and sometimes uncomfortable, but she was, like me, the most popular girl at Goode. It was expected for us to date.

Too bad I would have to crush her when I told her about my 'thing' with Annabeth. It was inevitable; if I was going to get Annabeth to fall in love with me I would have to be in a relationship with her. Hopefully people will forget about that the second they see me in my new car.

Rachel stayed with me until late at night, when she had to go home. My mom entered the apartment seconds after Rachel left. I realized I hadn't done my homework, so I knew I would get a few F's tomorrow. It was something I was used to deal with.

**Annabeth's POV**

When I walked into my math class the following day after the whole 'chemistry incident' everyone knew everything about, I saw Thalia already sitting there with a huge smile on her face. She was obviously waiting for me because when she saw me she jumped up happily. It was the perkiest I have seen her in a while.

She hugged me tightly and started to jump up and down, which was completely out of character for Thalia. I kind of wished she was so happy because she and Nico got together, but then I remembered she was with me last night, so there was no way she saw him.

"Hey Thals. Why so happy?"

"You will never believe this! My dad called me! We're going on a vacation!" she yelled and I finally realized why she was so happy. Her dad, Zeus, was the CEO of a huge electricity company, and he was a really busy man, so Thalia barely saw him. She mostly stayed in her own apartment where she lived with a maid. She refused to live in the huge house her father owned. Still, she loved her father, and always wanted him to be proud of her, but since he barely showed it, it made her unhappy. She was dying for any free moment she could have with him.

"That's awesome! When are you leaving?" I asked her, a bit excited myself. Whenever Thalia went somewhere with her father, she would come back with a huge smile on her pretty face.

"Next week! Oh my God Annie, I can't wait! We're going to London!" she clapped her hands together. We talked about her trip to London and British guys until the teacher walked in. He placed his books on the table and started going from table to table, checking homework. Thalia and I were safe; we were both pretty good in school. But then he went into the back of the class and soon I heard him yelling at someone. Thalia and I whipped around in our chairs and saw that Mr. Black was yelling at Percy. He looked like he didn't care, but I saw the obvious panic in his eyes.

"Chase! Come here!" he called me and I quickly got up and strolled to Percy's table. Mr. Black's eyes squinted at me and he handed me Percy's notebook.

"Chase, do see anything written here?" he yelled out and caused me to flinch. I saw that Percy was clenching his jaw and gripping his fists.

"No sir, nothing." I said in a whisper.

"Do you think you could help him write something on this paper?!" he asked again. I looked at Percy who was already looking at me. I turned back to Mr. Black.

"I think I could sir."

"Okay then. Jackson this is your third F. We have a test on Friday. If you manage to get at least a B, I will ignore the F's. Chase, you have to help him. If he gets a B, you will get an A+, but if he gets anything lower, you fail too." He said curtly and walked back to his desk. I ran after him.

"But sir! It means we only have three days!" I exclaimed. There was no way I could teach Percy calculus by the end of this week. I don't think I could teach him by the end of the decade.

"You said you could help him. You have until Friday. I have said what I have to say." He said and made me sit down. I was starting to panic. I couldn't fail math, I always had an A in it! And there was also no way Percy could get a B. Thalia sent me a few sympathetic looks but didn't say anything.

When I walked out, I heard someone running after me. I also knew it was Percy.

"Sorry about that." He said.

"Why are you sorry? I'm the one who got me in trouble with my big mouth. God, I can't believe he thinks I could help you get a B!" I moaned. Percy pulled at my elbow and made me stop in the middle of the hallway.

"I'm not stupid Annabeth, no matter what you think. Maybe if you explained it to me, I would get it." He shrugged his shoulders and I laughed. I know how mean that was, but I seriously doubted him and his abilities. Percy didn't come off as the smartest guys there is.

"You… you think you can get a B?" I asked him, seriously this time.

"Yeah, I do. I just need help." He said and looked me straight in the eye. I sighed, giving up. After a while I nodded my head in defeat.

"Okay, then today after school you have to meet me in the library. You know how that building looks like, right?" I teased him and Percy rolled his green orbs.

"Noooo." He drawled out sarcastically. I turned around to walk away when I heard Percy calling me.

"Hey Annabeth, it's that brown building, right?" he said and I actually thought he was serious. But when I turned around I saw a huge grin on his face that I couldn't help but return.

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You guys are pretty awesome, do you know that? Just thought I'd let you know.

Anyway, thanks to everyone who reviewed/favorited/subscribed you make my day :D

Hope you liked it, new chapter up tomorrow!


	6. The library

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I found myself rushing to the library against my own will. I was actually excited to see what Percy was able to do when he really pushed himself. As far as I knew, he never got anything higher than a C. I think Thalia once mentions he had dyslexia so he had trouble studying. Still, I had dyslexia too, but I still managed to get A's. If you push yourself hard enough, there's nothing you can't do.

I was approaching the steps of the library and I saw Percy coming from the opposite direction. I scrunched my eyebrows at him. Wasn't he at school as well? Then why in the world was he coming from the opposite direction of the school. Percy must have foreseen my question and showed me a paper bag in his hands.

"I went and got us some coffee and sandwiches. You know, since we'll probably be here a long time." He said and I smiled at his… consideration. Then it hit me what I had promised Thalia. Don't trust him Annabeth. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. He probably wanted something. Percy was never nice to me, and now he was acting up and doing his best to get me to talk to him.

"Great. Let's go." I said curtly and we walked into the library. I saw a few of Goode students there, and they were all reading or studying, expect for one couple that was making out in the 'economic sciences' section. Percy and I took our seats at the table far away from the librarian's desk. I dug out my math book and my notes I had written, and Percy followed. He took a seat next to me and started to read a section I told him to.

I looked at him from the profile while he read. I saw how his eyebrows scrunched up when he focused, and how he got a twinkle in his eye when he understood something. His back was hunched over and his hair fell into his eyes sometimes, before he brushed it off. We sat in silence while he read the sections, but something bugged me.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked him before I even thought about it. Percy slowly looked at me. His eyes were darker now, and I realized I hit a touchy subject. I looked around the room but I could feel his eyes on me.

"You're not going to insist?" he asked me, his voice was deep and raspy.

"I can tell you don't want to tell me. I won't push it." I shrugged. Percy looked at me for a few second before he sighed and bookmarked the book before closing it.

"Because of my mom. I can't disappoint her. Not again and not after everything she's doing for me." He admitted and looked at him, waiting for him to say something first. Percy chuckled and bumped me with his knee.

"Come on, you can ask." He rolled his eyes.

"What is she doing for you?" I blurted out before I realized how rude that sounded. But Percy wasn't fazed by it. He just seemed to be thinking about how to answer me.

"Well… Okay, if you want to know everything, you'll have to know the beginning of the story. So my dad-"

"Wait!" I cut him off before he went any further. Percy closed his mouth and raised his eyebrows. I looked around the library, and even thought they thought I couldn't notice them, I saw some kids looking our way. They were probably listening to every word we were saying. They didn't know, but I had a pretty high IQ, and they couldn't fool me by stuffing their faces into their history books.

"Not here. You can leave your bag on the chair, nobody will touch it. C'mon." I jerked my head towards one of the sections in the far corner of the room.

We walked and Percy looked through the shelves. When I sat on one of the chairs he smirked at me, "Architecture? Seriously Chase?" he snorted and picked up a book about the Golden Gate Bridge.

"Okay, so maybe I want to become an architect one day. What's it to you? Besides, don't change the subject. Go on." I urged him and Percy laughed.

"Right. Well, like I said, my dad left me and my mom before I was even born. My mom is very traditional, so when she found out she was having a boy, she was sure he would need a male role model. So she married Gabe." The way he said his name made my skin crawl and I felt a sudden disdain towards that man, even if have never met him.

"I don't think you like him that much."

"Well, he smells, he does nothing around the house, all he does is play poker with his drinking buddies and sleeps. Not to mention he's a terrible husband and treats my mom like crap." Percy said with so much fury in his voice I got scared. For some reason I wanted him to be calm, he was better to talk to that way.

"And how does he treat you?" I asked him quietly. My voice was barely above whisper, but the library was almost empty, so Percy heard me clearly.

"Even worse." He said in a voice quieter than my own. I felt terribly sorry for him at that moment, and I just wanted to hug him like a little kid who lost his teddy bear. I didn't, but I still felt the need to say something that might help him.

"I never met my mom." I said and Percy's head snapped up.

"That… sucks. I'm sorry." He said. Percy actually seemed sorry, not that crap he always says with a cynic smirk when he dumps his lunch over some poor freshman.

"I guess it's fine. Though I can't help but to wonder sometimes what would it be like if I met her. If I knew why she left me. I mean, no one ever told me was it because she was poor or maybe sick or she just... I don't know, I guess I just want to know if she wanted me." I told him. At that second, in that corner, I felt like I could tell him anything. It was weird, because just a few days ago I ran away whenever I saw him.

"Why wouldn't she want you? I mean, you're obviously smart, and by looking at you and Thalia during breaks, you laugh like idiots, so I presume you're funny too. You're also really bea- a really good friend to her." He corrected himself before he said something. I was surprised by his sudden honesty, and I forgot everything Thalia told me, even though there was an alarm going off in my head.

"You look at Thalia and I during breaks?" I asked in my sudden outburst of confidence. We looked at each other for a second and then spoke in the same time.

"Nico." We started laughing.

"It's crazy how much they're drooling over each other!" I exclaimed and Percy nodded.

"Yeah. Wait, Thalia likes him back?" he asked in slight disbelief. I bet he thought that just because she turned him down she didn't have feelings for him.

"Kind of. But don't tell Nico. If it's going to happen, those two have to make it happen." I stuck my finger out at him. Percy chuckled and sat on the chair next to me, after finally letting go of all the books. I was seriously starting to doubt he ever stepped into this building.

"Anyway, don't think about your mom. She was stupid to leave you; she has no idea what she's missing. I just wish my dad would feel the same way about my mom." He admitted. He was completely honest and I grabbed his hand.

"He does. Sooner or later, every man regrets something. I bet you guys are his' something." I don't think I helped him much with that, but he seemed calmer. He stroked my hand with his thumb and we just sat there, until I asked him something I've been dying to since we got here.

"Percy?"

"Hm?" he asked; deep in thought.

"Why are you suddenly being so friendly? Didn't you and I work by the whole -hating-each-other-tactic?" I asked him. For a few seconds he was quiet, before he looked up and smiled a little.

"Maybe I realized there was more in you than a loser who wanted to kill me."

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**Okay, quick story time, if you're up for it.**

**So yesterday after school, this guy, one of my best friends, called me. Right now, I am in my bed, coughing my brains out and running a fever, but that's beside the point. So****, he called me and told me he would bring me homework so I didn't fall back in school. I yelled at him and told him not to come, because I always look like hell when I'm sick, and I didn't want him to see me like that.**

**He told me he wouldn't come, but then around eight in the evening, someone knocked on my bedroom door. It was him with a big bowl of his mom's homemade chicken soup. **

**And that's the story of how my best guy friend in the world turned out to be an even better friend than I thought. Not to mention he should be running a fever as well anytime soon, because he's an idiot I love.**

**I hope that didn't bore you, but I needed to tell someone since I still can't go to school to see some of my girl friends.**

**Bye, hope you liked the chapter! :D**


	7. Under the weather

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Percy and I met regularly in the library, and I hate to say it, but I think we were starting to be something you might interpret as friends. Sure, we didn't share secrets with each other, or gossiped, but we talked to each other and sometimes even joked and laughed. It was weird, ever since Percy stopped bugging me, everyone else did too. I was now the girl who was friends with both Percy and Nico, two guys that ran their group. Nobody still came to sit with me, but at least there were no more color bombs in my locker, and I was grateful for that.

When Friday finally rolled around, both Percy and I have been on the verge of our nerves. I snapped at Thalia three times, until she told me to stop worrying, called me a real blonde and walked away. I saw Percy fight with some of his friends before math. When the teacher spread the tests around the room, I gave Percy a thumbs-up. He forced out a smile and nodded his head, but I swear, I could see beads of sweat cover his forehead.

My hands shook as I wrote the answers down on the paper, and when I looked at Percy, I saw his hands shake as well. Except I doubted his knowledge. We worked hard for three days straight, but I didn't think that's enough. Three days were nothing compared to four weeks we have been studying this lesson.

When the bell finally rang and when Mr. Black came and picked up the tests, Percy trudged over to me. I looked at him and hoped it came off sympathetic and not pitiful.

"How'd you do?"

"I don't know. But I think I did well." He lied. I nodded, but didn't say anything about it. All I knew was that this was going to be a very long weekend. I would be more concerned about his results than my own.

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Thalia and I agreed that she would spend the weekend at my house, since she was leaving on Monday. I had already planned a weekend filled with movies and junk food.

That Friday, we watched the entire Step Up movie franchise and ate so much pizza I could _feel _myself getting fat. We went to bed at about two in the morning, after talking for two hours. It was one of those rare times when Thalia told me everything, starting with her crush on Nico and ending with her screwed up relationship with her dad.

We talked about Percy too, and she scowled at me for becoming friends with him. I didn't tell her everything Percy told me about his father, I didn't think that would be fair to him. In all fairness, I wouldn't want someone telling stories about my life either.

After we said good night, I spent a good half an hour thinking about Percy. He was definitely something I couldn't understand, but I wanted to. I knew he was still his old self, but he wasn't like that with me, not anymore. He still dated Rachel, but he told me he was thinking about ending it with her. It was like he was a little bit cold and then a little bit hot.

On Saturday, Thalia and I did the same thing over again. Only this time we ate tortillas and watched every season of Supernatural. When we were little, we would tell each other we would marry them two and be best friends with brother husbands. It seemed ridiculous, but I liked to remember the old times.

Thalia fell asleep earlier than usual, and I was just about to go to sleep as well when I got a text. I quickly unlocked my phone and saw I had a message from Percy.

'Call me?' it said. If he put any smiley faces like he sometimes did, it meant he was screwing around, but the message was so simple and it made me think something serious happened. He picked up after two rings and his voice sounded desperate.

"What happened?" I asked him.

"I… got in a fight with Gabe. It's pretty serious Annabeth; I don't think he'll let me back into the apartment." He sighed.

"What happened?" I asked him; suddenly I felt panic spread over my body. If he wasn't in his house, and he wasn't at Nico's (Thalia told me he's visiting his dad), where was he?

"He crossed the line Annabeth. He really crossed the line this time." He snarled out.

"Percy, calm. You know what; you can come here if you want. Thalia's asleep, and Susanne is at her sister's with my dad and brothers. Also I have an empty guest room."

'Or I could make you sleep on the floor.' I thought, but say anything.

I told him my address and in a matter of minutes he was knocking on my front door. I silently went down the stairs, so I didn't wake Thalia up. It's wasn't a problem anyway, since Thalia always sleeps like an elephant on pain killers.

It has started to rain, so when Percy arrived, he was drenched to the bone. Water fell from his hair and glided down his face. He shook slightly; I didn't know if it was from the rain and cold or from his anger. Still, he didn't look so angry anymore. Something in my head told me he wasn't angry at all, based on the light color of his eyes. And I saw with my own two eyes that when Percy gets mad, his eyes turn a dark shade of green.

I decided to ignore it for now, and lead him to the couch. "What happened?"

"My mom is working the night shift tonight, so she told me to do some things around the house. I started to wash the dishes when Gabe strode in drunk as hell; he barely managed to keep his ass from denting the floor and falling into the flat under us. A very long story short, he and I got into a fight and I threw a plate at him, after which he threw me out. Some father, right?" he said with sarcasm in his voice.

"I'm sorry." I didn't know what else to say to him. He seemed miserable. So instead of pushing him more, I tugged on his hand and lead him to the guest room, after dragging him after me a little bit. I gave him my dad's old sweatpants and a t-shirt, in which he changed after he took a shower. I stood at the doorway, and when Percy came out, while drying his hair with a towel, he walked closer to me.

"Thanks Chase. I appreciate this. Really."

"Yeah, sure. But I wanted to ask you something." I said to ease up the mood. Percy went back into the bathroom and came back without the towel in his hands.

"Que?" he said and I laughed at him. He sometimes had these moments where he would speak the little Spanish he learnt from Leo, one of his friends and the one that brought those stupid needles into the classroom.

"You do the dishes in your house? And I thought there was nothing else about you that could surprise me. Even after I learned you knew how to knit." I chuckled and Percy grinned. I might be mistaken, but I think we were flat-out flirting. If Thalia knew, I would already be five feet underground. Percy surprised me when he quickly moved across the room and came into my personal space. Not that I stopped him anyway.

"That's not all. I know how to iron too." He said seriously and then did the next craziest thing. He leaned down and kissed me. It was short, but it made my hair frizzle up. He broke the kiss and without a second word, closed the door in my face, leaving me there to stand with my lips still puckered from a kiss I wanted more than anything to happen again.

God, I was so pathetic sometimes.

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**Holy Hades' underpants! He kissed her! But no, I won't let them get away with it. Next chapter brings a twist... **

**Okay, another short story. I promise I'll stop doing these.**

**So there was this English competition yesterday that I had to go even though I was sick. So there we were, my friend from the last short story and I. In the middle of the test he starts shaking me and when I looked up he was holding his test on a page I haven't gotten to yet. So I read it and guess what the question is?**

**Who wrote the adventure/fantasy book series Percy Jackson and the Olympians?**

**a) Richard Russell Riordan**

**b)Richard Rick Riordan**

**c)Russel Richard Riordan**

**I started to laugh my butt off and the entire room started to stare at me. I was so embarrassed but at the same time so happy Rick was in my test. Of course I got it right, and then my teacher stopped me in the hallway after three hours or so and told me that only my friend (cuz he also loves PJ), me and some other kid got the question right.**

**The life lesson of this story? Read fantasy novels about Greek gods, it will help you in competitions! :DD**

**Bye my angel faced potatoes!**


	8. A real punch in the face

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When I woke up in the morning, I was still a little bit flustered over my kiss with Percy. I quickly and silently dug my way out of my room. I tried my best not to wake Thalia up because she would most probably bite my head off. I darted into the guest room, but when I entered it was empty. Percy was gone and I would be lying if I told you I haven't expected it. I knew he would disappear the second he woke up, which he probably did. I wasn't even sure what he was thinking when he kissed me yesterday. It was probably only to say thank you for letting him stay here.

I tried my best to suppress the disappointment and I decided I wouldn't even tell Thalia that Percy was here. It was probably the best for all three of us if she didn't know.

But Thalia, sharp as always, surprised me when during breakfast she flung one of her banana slices at me. I realized I was leaning on my arm and probably looked like someone died. When I thought about it, I probably sighed a few times too. It was a miracle she didn't say or do something sooner.

"Okay, what's wrong with you?" she asked me but I could tell she already knew just by looking at her eyes. Her pupils always dilated when she asked something but knew the truth beforehand. So, without even trying to lie to her, I pushed my cereal away from me and jumped straight to the point.

"How do you know about Percy?" Thalia wasn't surprised by my question; she probably knew I was going to ask her that. We just worked like that; we both knew each other for way too long. We could always see right through each other. She smirked at me as she stuffed her face with her cereal. She ate it with banana slices and I could never understand why.

"I woke up in the middle of the night and heard him sneezing in the guest room. I repeat my question, what's wrong with you?" she asked me again, but this time she was obviously indicating I had lost my marbles.

"I… He called me in the middle of the night, said he got into a fight with his step-dad. I just… took pity on him I guess." I admitted and shrugged my shoulders. Thalia stared at me for a couple of seconds before shrugging and returning to her breakfast.

"Okay." She mumbled and continued to read the newspaper.

"Okay? So, you're like… okay, with Percy and me hanging out?" I asked her in shock. Thalia rolled her blue eyes and smiled at me.

"Well I mean… Let me ask you something. Do you think he's playing a game on you?" she asked me and finally pushed the paper away. I wanted to tell her how I felt like something's wrong at times, but then I remembered how he told me things about his father and how miserable he was yesterday. He seemed like he was finally coming to his senses with studying as well.

"No." I shook my head. I was sure in my answer. I was sure in Percy.

"Then I won't go against it. After all, you didn't listen to me before, if I told you anything now, would you?"

"Not really."

"Then I'll give him a chance as well. Besides, Nico changed as well, so I guess it's possible for guys to do that." She said, winked at me, got out of her seat and left the kitchen.

* * *

The next day, Thalia was gone and I couldn't do anything about the loneliness I was starting to feel. It was silly, because she would be back in a matter of days and it'll be like she never left. But Thalia was my best friend, the girl I could tell anything to and my biggest support system.

I had no idea how much support I would need that day.

The day started like it always did: I got up, walked around a little bit feeling lifeless and then went to school. I had to go by bus because my dad couldn't settle on buying me a car no matter how much I pleaded. With Thalia gone my ride was gone too, so I was left with the stinky old bus.

The upside was that I saw a familiar figure in the bus as well. In the back seat, with his headphones on, sat Nico. He slowly nodded his head to the song and I crossed the bus to sit next to him. When he saw me he took his buds out of his ears and raised his eyebrows.

"Annabeth?"

"Hey." I waved slightly at him.

"Why are you taking the bus?"

"Thalia has gone to London with her dad. I'm kind of stuck ride-less. You?"

"My car broke down." He said sadly and I couldn't help but laugh a little. Nico cracked a grin and I knew he was joking with me. Suddenly I remembered he was away for the weekend.

"When did you get back?"

"Last night. I tried calling Percy but the idiot had his phone on silent." He rolled his eyes. I debated whether or not I should tell him about Percy and what happened last night. But he was so like Thalia that it made everything blurt out of me before I could stop myself.

"Really? He actually called last night and told me he got into a fight with his step dad. Something about plate throwing. He spent the night in my guest room." Nico seemed surprised but what he said next surprised me even more.

"What? Percy didn't get into a fight with Smelly Gabe. I called his house a while later and he picked up. When I asked him about Percy he said that the twerp left, which was even better for him since he had his poker buddies over." He said and then slowly raised a hand to his mouth like he just said something he shouldn't have.

"But… If Percy just walked out and if they didn't get in a fight then that means… he lied."

The bus stopped at that second. I flew out of that bus like it was on fire; my mind was set on finding Percy and kicking him in the face. Maybe the stomach. Nico called my name and ran after me before he caught my arm just before I entered the school.

"Annabeth! What are you gonna do?" he asked me, somewhat scared. I probably looked murderous, with my hair flying around my face from the wind and the heavy breathing I could barely control. I just felt so angry; I don't think I have ever felt that way in my life. Sure, he pissed me off before, but now I was actually going to do something about it. I wasn't going to let him take advantage of me like that.

"Kill him." I said and ripped my hand out of his grasp. Nico ran after me but gave up eventually. He probably realized I would get to Percy sooner or later. For his sake, I hoped it would be sooner.

I didn't manage to find Percy until after third period, when he came running towards me. He had a paper in his hands and he kept yelling something out. Before I could say anything to him, he put his hands around my waist and picked me up in a bone crushing hug.

"I got a B+! Did you hear me?! I got a B+!" he yelled as he spun me around. I somehow wriggled out of his grasp and pushed him away from me. I refused to feel happy for him. I didn't want to let him get his way, not after he lied to me.

I took two long steps forward and before I could control my own hand, punched him in the face. Percy went stumbling back while he gripped his nose. I noticed blood dripping all over the white linoleum floor. His eyes were wide and bloodshot from the tears I bet he wanted to cry. I mean, I heard it was painful getting your nose broken, and now Percy knew that as well.

"You just got punched too."

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**It's not my fault I just love Annabeth hitting Percy in the face... Oops? But no, maybe they'll make up in the next chapter. I haven't decided yet.**

**So, another heartfelt moment... I just wanted to say thanks for all support and the love I have been getting. It means a lot to me. I love to read your reviews and they make my day. I know I don't respond to some of them, but I really don't have the time. I just get on here, upload a chapter and sign out. So thanks again 3**

**Imaginary hugs and pizzas for all of you!**


	9. Annabeth's a mean girl

**Read and Review**

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I ran out of that hallway before Percy's henchmen could get to me. I saw a few of them; the Stoll brothers, Leo, Beckendorf, Chris… all of which belonged in his tight circle and probably wanted to throw me off the face of the Earth right now. So I just ran, like I pretty much always did. I was wrong, nothing has changed, and it may have even gotten worse.

I hid in my English class and while I sat there, I quickly rewind in my head whether or not any of them had English with me. When I finally convinced myself they didn't, I let out a huge sigh of relief.

The rest of the day went so slowly, it literally hurt me. I was panicking all through class, so by the end of the day I couldn't remember anything we talked about. I ate my lunch in the park a little bit further away from school. Still, I found it pathetic that my hands shook so badly I couldn't even eat my sandwich in peace.

But I wasn't worried about getting suspended or about Percy's friends getting to me. I was worried about Percy. I was going through my biology book when I saw a picture of a man sprawled over the floor, with blood dripping out of his mouth and his hands in an uncomfortable position. The description underneath the picture said: "A common result of a trauma caused by a direct or an indirect impact on the face."

Basically, it showed what it looked like when you whacked somebody on the head with… a baseball bat apparently, based on the blood amount in the picture.

Ever since I saw that picture, I got strange scenarios of what happened to Percy after I ran away. I hit him pretty hard, if I can say so myself. In one of them, Percy fainted and was immediately driven to a hospital with an emergency car that I have no idea where it came from. In the other one, he started to shake uncontrollably and then he had foam coming out of his mouth… Okay, so my ideas weren't really realistic.

But still, I was on the edge through the entire day, just waiting for bad news to strike. And look, they did. I was just finishing my sandwich when Leo came running towards me. I was just about to punch him and run away when he stretched his hands out on a safe distance.

"No wait! Annabeth, we've been looking for you all day!"

I huffed and clenched my fists tighter, "No kidding."

"No, you don't get it! Percy isn't feeling well, he's in the infirmary!" he yelled. He continued to yell after me but I was already running in the opposite direction he came from. I was out of my seat and running out of the park as soon as I heard him say Percy isn't feeling well. Suddenly every scenario in my head made sense. I swear was running like I was at the Olympics.

I stopped in the waiting room, to calm down my breathing and my nerves. I didn't want to look that pathetic, with my hair ruffled and face red from sprinting. I slowly knocked on the door while my heart was beating in my chest and blood pounding in my ears. I walked in and the first thing that happened was Nico, who walked out in front of me and grabbed my arms. Grover, another one of Percy's friends, closed the door after he left the room. I started to fight Nico, but all he did was tighten his grip more. When I saw Percy walk out of the room next door, I was madder than I have ever been.

Not to mention the smile on his face that got my blood pressure going through the roof.

"You ran all the way here." He said simply and hopped on the bed. He was fine, perfectly fine, while I worried my butt of, thinking I had caused him getting a concussion. Can I do a rewind on that?

"So?" I spat out at him and pushed against Nico again. He was tall and kinda scrawny, but he had muscles, I will give him that. "Honestly Percy, I thought you could at least do the dirty work on your own. Not have your sidekicks do it for you."

"Hey!" Nico protested from behind me. I slowly turned my head around.

"Oh, no offense Nico and- wait, what the hell am I talking about?! I'm mad at you, you lied to me!" I yelled at Percy the second I remembered what he did. I wasn't surprised when Percy's face expression didn't change. I was disappointed though. I half-expected him to at least pretend he felt bad for what he did. But like I could predict, he was a remorseless bag of cow poop and there were no feelings in him apparently.

"Let her go." Percy shrugged at Nico who released my hands almost immediately, like he couldn't wait to do it before. Before he closed the door, he whispered in my ear.

"Tell Thalia I… you know." He said and closed the door. I caught him winking at me just before the door shut completely. I smiled at Nico and his uncomfortable self. He couldn't even admit to someone he missed her.

"Annabeth…" Percy started.

"What?" I snapped at him and went straight for the door. When I jiggled the knob, I realized the door was locked. I cursed Nico in my head before I turned to my least favorite person in the world.

"You're just like I thought you were." I said and sat down on a chair in the far corner of the room. Percy rolled his eyes liked I said the stupidest thing ever.

"Okay, I lied to get close to you, so what?"

"So what? SO WHAT? Percy, you didn't lie to me about buying a dog! You lied to me about getting into a serious fight with your step-dad that I'm not even sure exists." Percy walked closer to me and then crouched down on my level. He stared down at me, while I tried my best to avoid his eyes.

"Oh, Gabe is real, trust me. I wish he wasn't though."

"And everything else you told me? Is that a lie too?" Percy shrugged again. It was amazing how little emotion he showed, it was like talking to a brick wall at best. I wanted to do something right then and there. I wanted to hurt him. Say something so bad he would have to show a reaction. I wanted him for once to feel a bad thing. To feel that sting in the heart you get when somebody hurts you. I didn't even have to think about it, I already knew the perfect thing to say.

"You wanna know what I think about your dad leaving you? I think he just got tired of you and your disgusting personality so he packed his bags and left. I would have done the same thing." I said. The moment it left my mouth I could hear how bad those few sentences sounded. They sounded plain mean and made for destruction of a friendship we had building up.

By the look of Percy's eyes, I could tell I hit the right spot. They turned that dark shade of green that told me he was both hurt and angry. His face was a perfect mask though, there was even less emotion now.

"You know what? I don't even know why I bothered. You are obviously just like the rest of them." He said bitterly and got up. I got up too, and grabbed him by the arm.

"Okay, I… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. It was really mean girls of me." I tried to make a joke and somehow get him to look at me. I found it funny how I was always the one trying to do something about him. Like I was always the giver, and he just took everything I gave him. It went on like that from the day we met.

When he looked at me, I saw his eyes were bloodshot red and just a little bit glossy. I figured out he was sincerely hurt and I felt really bad at that second. I wanted to make it better; I wanted to make _him _feel better. So I wrapped my hands around his waist without thinking. I felt so much better and less awkward when he slowly wrapped his hands around me and returned the hug.

We stood there for quite some time, when we finally let go of each other, Percy smirked at me.

"We're back at the start, huh?" I smiled at him. I honestly didn't know, but I didn't want to be back at the beginning. I felt like both Percy and I deserved better than what we were before. I felt like it would take him forever to kiss me now, and I really, really wanted him too. I didn't know what I wanted with Percy, was it friend or enemies or something third, but I felt like we were going in the right way. I mean, we will probably always be at each other's throats but we could just like that be the best of friends.

It's the only thing I had in my mind when I laced my hand with his' and pulled him through the door.

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**Okay, I have no freaking idea what happened yesterday... All I know is that I updated the story, and when I came back three or four hours later, tthe chapter didn't come up. Ugh, silly little FF site.**

**Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, because it marks the beginning of better times for Annabeth and Percy. I will let them be friends (or something else?) for a little now and build a relationship of some kind. Thalia should be back soon as well so maybe there will be some Thalico :)**

**Short story time? Awesome.**

**So I finally got my hands on the Heroes of the Olympus series. Yeah... you read that right, I still haven't read the books, even though i pretty much know everything about them: the characters, the plot, the villains... oh my Gods. So, I'm trying to start reading, but there's a big blockage in my head. Like, whenever I pick up a book I remember how this is the last of Percy I will ever read and I put it down. I am still stuck on the first chapter in the Lost Hero book. Well, I was stuck. **

**See my best friend, I will finally tell you his name is Leo (yeah, how awesome is that?), went on a trip this morning, but before he left, he and his family came to say bye because we're all so close. Anyway, I left him in my room alone for five minutes and went to get us sodas, and when I came back he had an innocent smile on his face, but I, being the blonde I am, ignored it. I had a burning desire and finally made up my mind to start reading a few minutes ago, but when I left to get the book... gone.**

**He took it. He didn't read it either, but I have a feeling he will soon.**

**So Leo, if you are reading this right now over your phone, let me just tell you that I will shave your head when you get back and make slippers for myself from it. Looooove you.**

**True story :D**


	10. The swings can be dangerous

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**Percy POV**

Sometimes, things just work out for you. I didn't know how Annabeth found out I lied to her until Nico told me he blurted out. I usually had a soft spot for my emo best friend, so I got over it in a second. Then I made of plan of how to get Annabeth to forgive me. I arranged with Leo and Grover to make sure she gets to the infirmary, and Nico was in charge of making sure his mom wasn't there.

I saw her running to the infirmary through the glass, and I couldn't help but to fell happy about that. I think I was finally starting to go in the right direction with her, I even got to kiss her and she didn't punch me in the face. Well she didn't in that moment.

Speaking of, that kiss was definitely something that kept me up at night. I could barely close my eyes after I closed the door, and it took me over two hours to fall asleep. I kept tossing and turning in bed, the kiss playing over and over in my head. The sheets and the pillow cases weren't helping either, they smelled like Annabeth. She had this sweet jasmine scent to her that made my head spin just in the right way, not that I would ever admit it.

And then she said what she said. "You wanna know what I think about your dad leaving you? I think he just got tired of you and your disgusting personality so he packed his bags and left."

I kept repeating it in my head. It was true. It was so achingly true and I hated her for it. She actually had the guts to say something I have been trying to deny all these years. But she was right. Most of the time I was a disgusting person. Annabeth was the only one brave enough to tell me. Nico knew it too, but he always saw the best in me, so he didn't even try to go there.

I was just about to leave the room and probably cry like a baby, but Annabeth grabbed my hand and pulled me back. She mumbled something about mean girls and then hugged me. Her hug was nothing like the hugs Rachel constantly gave me. Hers was warm, comforting and it made me feel like home. It sucked all the worries away and made me return it, just to be closer to her.

It occurred to me in one second I should not feel this way, but I quickly dropped the thought out of my head.

We stood there for what seemed hours, when in reality it was just a few minutes. When she looked at me again her eyes were that pretty shade of grey. It seemed like she forgave me for that little stunt I lied about. I remembered the bet against my will, and I needed to know where I stood with her.

"We're back at the start, huh?" I asked her but she just smiled at me, laced her fingers with mine and pulled me out the door.

"So you got a B+ in math?" she teased me as we pushed each other around in the hallways.

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It was probably one of the best working weeks of my life. Annabeth has become the person I thought about the first thing in the morning, when I called her to wake her up, and the last in the evening, when I texted her good night. I thought about two things in general: Annabeth and the bet. Though it was starting to bother me I would have to break her heart. Even the picture of me driving that car in my head was starting to get awfully gray. Like it didn't matter anymore.

All that mattered was being with Annabeth. Thalia decided she would stay and extra week in London, so I basically had her all to myself. I did something any rational man in my position would do; I included Annabeth in every aspect of social life in Goode. We had lunch together, the guys loved her. I even caught Leo and a few other guys slobbering after her a few times, which got my blood boiling against my will. I have no idea why.

I also broke up with Rachel after that day in the infirmary with Annabeth. After she clung onto my arm I realized I wasn't going to be able to keep up with the charade anymore. I focused on getting further with Annabeth and getting people in Goode to accept her. In a short week I transferred Annabeth into one of those girls guys wanted to be with and girls wanted to be.

Except I realized she didn't want that.

So one day while we were studying in the library I decided to find out why.

"Hey Annabeth?" I called her.

"Hm?" she mumbled. She had her head stuffed in some book about Ancient Greece. I noticed how her blonde curls nicely fell around her face and framed it; or how her nose scrunched when she really thought hard about something. I quickly snapped out my daze and tried to focus on anything that wasn't her.

"Why are you anti-social?" her head snapped up and she looked at me with wide eyes and raised eyebrows.

"What?"

"Well I mean, I have been working my ass off for the past week to get you to become… someone, and you don't seem to want it that bad. You always look... I dunno, sad." I shrugged like I never thought about it. But I did. I saw how her eyes got all sad and clouded when she was surrounded by people, even though she was smiling.

Annabeth pushed the book away from her. "Do I really look like somebody who depends on their popularity status?"

I laughed a little. "No offence Annabeth, but you don't really scream nerd. I mean, you're tall with a good figure, tanned, you have long blonde hair… do I need to go on?" her face flushed at the series of compliments I just spilled. I wanted to be embarrassed too, but it was just too hard because everything I said was true.

"No. But thanks."

"You know Annie, if you wanted, I could make a celebrity out of you. You could go into the history of our school as the girl everybody wanted to be." I motioned with my hands to make my point. Annabeth rolled her eyes, got up, and whacked me over the head.

"You really don't know me, do you Seaweed Brain?" she said and picked up her books. I ran after her as she went to check the stack of books out. When we got out of the library, I took the books out of her hands and almost fell on my butt.

"Jeez, Annabeth! Do you read Harry Potter on every language?" I asked her as she buttoned up her jacket. A cold front hit New York a few days ago, and the temperatures went so low in the evening, they dropped below zero sometimes. Though that pretty weather girl on CBS said that we would be able to wear our more fall-like clothes next week or so.

"No! It's just some easy read for me to scroll through before bed." She shrugged and I gawked at the big stack in my hands. I dumped the books in the back seat of my mom's SUV and turned around only to see Annabeth going in the opposite way of the car.

"Yo! Where are you going? Annabeth!" I called after her, but being her stubborn self, she didn't respond. So I sighed, frustrated and amused at the same time, and ran after her, like I pretty much did all the time now.

I caught up with her after a few blocks, when we went under a gate with a sign. I turned back to read it and struggled a bit because of my dyslexia, but I eventually made up the words on the big wooden board. It said 'St. John's children playground.' I frowned in confusion. I had no idea why the ditzy blonde would lead me here, or how she even knew about this place.

There wasn't really much of a playground there either. The only thing still standing were the swings colored in bright red.

"Annabeth why are we here?" I asked her when we sat on the swings. She swung her feet back and forth, and soon she was high up, then down low. It was funny watching her curls fly around her head.

When she finally stopped swinging, she turned to me in her seat.

"I was born in this hospital." She finally said sadly. I didn't know what to say to that, so I just waited for her to talk.

"It's the place they have last seen my mom. I went in there two years ago, hoping someone would tell me where she is, but the doctor that was with her during delivery transferred into a hospital in LA. They couldn't give me his number or anything." she shrugged.

"I'm sorry." I said quietly. I didn't know if that helped her or nor, but I wanted her to know I had sympathy for her. I went through the same kind of sadness whenever I thought of my dad.

"It's okay. Actually, one of the nurses there figured out who I was looking for and told me I had the same color of my eyes as my mom. And the hair." She smiled, but more to herself than to me. It was one of those smiles when you remember something that's really like a treasure for you.

"But you knew that, didn't you? I mean, your dad has dark brown hair and brown eyes. Not a real brain teaser."

"I know that Seaweed Brain! It was just nice to hear it from someone else." She smiled at me. I nodded my head; I understood that. Whenever someone told me I had my father's eyes or hair I would get really happy and proud about it, no matter how stupid it sounds.

"You want to know why I don't like all the attention? Why I prefer to have Thalia around me and just her? Why I stay away from dating and all that crap? It's because people hurt you Percy. I don't want to let anyone close to me enough to be able to hurt me. Because people do that. They find a crack in that wall you build for ages and they somehow squeeze in. And then they're like… roaches. They bite and bite and you don't even know it until you fall through your floor into someone else's apartment. My mom left me; my dad doesn't really care, or at least doesn't care enough to show it, and Susan… Well she tries. But if it ever came down to it, she would have me shipped off to a foster home without thinking twice, because it's best for Matt and Bobby." Annabeth stopped with her rant and took a deep breath. I just sat there in shock.

Then I said something that started an entire avalanche of feelings I never, not in the darkest pit of hell, wanted.

"I care about you."

**Annabeth POV**

"I care about you." Percy said quickly and then looked away before I could see his face. But there was no need; I could tell he meant it. His voice was too clear and honest; there was no way he was lying. I smiled at this; I finally got a positive emotion out of him.

"That's nice." I said jokingly and Percy rolled his eyes at me. He jumped out of his swing and walked behind me.

"Hey Annabeth, were you ever pushed?" he asked with a laugh, and I wondered what he was up to. It wasn't even on my mind to get off the damned swing.

"No, whyyyyyyyy!" I screamed from the top of my lungs when he gave me a strong push and the swing jerked forward.

"Just wondering!" he yelled back as he pushed me again. I was so scared that I forgot how fun this was. So when the scared-out-of-my-mind-part was over, I started to laugh as he pushed me. I was surprised at his strength; the swing went higher and higher with every push.

A bit too high if you ask me. At one point the swing started to shake and in a fit of fear, I unclenched my fists from it just in the second Percy pushed again. In one moment I was flying, in the other, I was screaming for Percy.

"ANNABETH!" he yelled and ran in my direction, a look of pure horror on his face. I have no idea what he was thinking, maybe that he could catch me or something, but all I know is that I hit that ground hard, my spine cracking as it connected with the dirt. For a second, everything was black and the only thing I could see were unicorns, but then my image shifted and cleared and I saw Percy's face looking down at me. He looked terrified and worried, and the image made my heart just a little bit warmer.

"Annabeth?! Oh good god, are you okay? Annabeth I am so sorry!" he yelled and shook my shoulders. The boy obviously had no knowledge of first aid.

"Lift my head up." I groaned. The simple sentence took my breath away.

"Oh, okay." He said and quickly pulled my up in his lap. I felt like I could finally breathe again.

"Well now I know what a bird feels. And am I grateful I'm not a pigeon." I said and Percy chuckled. I felt something wet and sticky under my fingers and I immediately went into panic mode since I thought it was blood. But then I realized I had fallen into a big puddle of mud. Great. Now I was both pathetic _and_ muddy.

Percy didn't seem to mind, in fact, he was also covered in mud and seemed happy about it. He had a small smile playing on his lips and I couldn't think of a reason why he would be happy about this situation. We were lying in a big muddy puddle, covered in the mentioned mud and freezing our butts off. I cringed at him.

"Why are you smiling?" I asked him. Percy smiled wider as he lowered his head.

"You have mud on your face." He said before he pressed his lips on mine.

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**AHHHHH I know what you're thinking- finally a chapter where they don't fight! Yeah, I can write those too :D**

**Okay, this short story is really short xD**

**So, Leo called me, he read my author's note and it turns out he did take my book. Big shocker there. But I didn't want him to get away with it, so I went to his house (I kinda have a spare key) and took half of his' CD collection. Yeah, I took his Metallica, Green Day, Guns and roses, ACDC, Coldplay, (strangely he had Madonna as well), ****OneRepublic**** and whatnot CD's.**

**So Leo, you will get them back (maybe) when I get my books back. And if I find a crumb in them, since I know how much you love to read and eat at the same time, I will burn your CDs. You know I will. **

**I hope you liked the chapter, loooove you all :D**


	11. Shoes bite

**Read and Review**

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When my phone rang at three in the morning, I felt like someone could lose their head. I realized I was shaking like a former drug abuser, but I ignored it, blamed it on the lack of sleep (thanks to Percy), and grabbed my phone to answer it. It was Thalia.

"What?" I growled into the speaker as I wrapped myself into a big ball of blankets. I heard Thalia chuckle on the other side of the line.

"Hey sleepyhead."

"Thalia it's three am! Why on earth are you calling me now?"

"Well it's like eight here. I just wanted to check up on you." She said. I opened my eyes one final time after I realized she wouldn't let me sleep no matter how tired and beat up I felt. I was rarely sick, but when I was, it ran me over.

"Thanks Thals. So, how's London treating you?" I asked her and made myself comfortable. When I shuddered one more time I realized I was running a fever. I sighed silently to myself; I was sad I would miss the next few days of school. More important, I would miss the Percy-and-me-time.

"Oh Annie this city is the best thing in the world! My dad and I spent all this time touring it, like; I have been to the Big Ben, London Bridge, and Buckingham palace! The food is, eh, more or less, but the people! Oh God, and the guys with the accents… Annabeth!" she yelled. My head snapped up. Damn, I must have dozed off.

"No, I'm listening. Boys with accents. Go on." I waved my hand for her to continue, before I realized she couldn't see it. Thalia was silent, for a second I thought she had cut me off, but then I heard her breathing.

"Annabeth is everything alright?" she asked me with suspicion coloring her voice. I cursed under my breath. Why was she so intuitive of these things?

"I'm sick." I admitted.

"How bad is it? For how long? Is your dad taking care of you? Cause if he isn't I will-"

"Thalia, chill! It's just a cold I suppose. I have a fever but that's it, I'm not dying you know." I laughed at her concern, but I was also very touched she cared so much. I heard Thalia huff.

Okay, but if it gets worse, you better call me Chase! I'll hop on a plane and be there to kick that cold out of you." She said and we started to laugh.

"You just enjoy the time with your dad. Trust me, I would too. Okay, I would like to go to sleep now, if you don't mind."

"Oh, yeah, sure. Call you later?" she asked me.

"Okay. Bye. Good night." I was just about to disconnect the call, but I remembered something. "Hey Thals!"

"Yeah?" she piped up.

"Nico says he misses you." I said quickly and pressed the red button before she got to say something. It was the best method with Thalia, cut her off before she protests and blows it.

I smiled contently to myself; I could just imagine her sitting dumbstruck with mouth open and eyes wide. It wasn't an image of Thalia I was used to, but boy, did I like seeing it. I snuggled into my pile of blankets and tried to warm myself up with the heat I was radiating. I knew I was sick as a dog, since I didn't get sick very often, but I did, it killed me and I stayed in bed for days.

It was around nine, and the first period was just over when I got a call from someone. I groggily woke up and checked my phone. Percy's name flashed on my screen and I couldn't help but grin a little. I wasn't in school for an hour, and he's already calling. I let it ring for a few seconds, just to see if he was going to give up, but it kept on ringing, which made me smile wider.

"Hello?" I finally gave in and answered.

"Where are you?! Did someone kidnap you?" he yelled on the phone, a bit panicky if you ask me.

"Geez Percy, I miss a lesson and you assume I'm kidnapped? Am I really that big of a nerd?" I asked him, kind of seriously, and he was silent for a few seconds.

"You know you are." He said in a serious but teasing tone and my jaw dropped. I heard Percy laughing.

"You just opened your mouth, didn't you?" he asked me and I quickly shut my mouth.

"NO!" I yelled, offended.

"Oh, come on Wise girl! I was just kidding!" he exclaimed. I smiled at the nickname he gave me a few days ago while we were in the library. He asked me a bogus question about the countries that were made after Soviet Union fell apart. When I counted all of them alphabetically, he told me he would call me Nerd Girl. After an argument and a few slaps directed his way he agreed to change it to Wise Girl, and called me a good negotiator.

"Fine. What do you want?"

"Well, where are you?"

"At home. I'm sick." I coughed at the same time I said it, so I think I made my point.

"Oh, crap. That sucks. Will you come to school tomorrow?" he asked worriedly.

"I… have no idea. It depends on how I'll fell. Crappy or normal." I said and Percy laughed.

"Hey, where are your parents?" he asked all of a sudden. I scrunched my eyebrows at his question but answered it anyway.

"Well dad's at work, and Susan first took Matt to the doctor and then took the twins to school. I think she's at her friend's house now or something." I shrugged to myself and chugged on the cup of tea Susan brought me before she left. It was berry flavored, and the warm feeling spread through my stomach. "Why do you want to know?" I asked him when I put the cup down. I grabbed my phone with my free hand, since I have been holding it to my head using my shoulder.

"I'm just wondering. Oh, I gotta go now, Black's here. Catch you later." He quickly said and soon the call was disconnected. As I stared at the screen I imagined this was how Thalia felt when I cut her off. It's not a very pleasant feeling. I rolled my eyes at the lack of Percy's formality with the teachers; he always called them by their last name which I found inappropriate, and went back to sleep.

I opened my eyes to a yummy smell that was tickling my nose. I smiled, it had to be Susan who brought me some soup and by the smell of it… coffee.

But it wasn't. When I opened my eyes, I saw Percy relaxing on my bed with his feet on my blankets. I nearly had a seizure but then I saw he took his shoes off. I relaxed in my pillow and sent him a lazy smile.

"What are you doing here, Seaweed Brain?" Percy shrugged and continued to smile at me.

"Just thought you could use some company." he shrugged. I pushed myself up and checked my phone that rested on the bedside table. It read nine thirty and I shot a look at Percy.

"Mr. Black wasn't actually coming. You were running out of school, weren't you?" I guessed and when he sent me a lopsided grin I knew I guessed correctly.

"Why must you know me so well?" he asked dramatically.

"I ask myself that same question every day."

"Oh come on! I brought you some chicken soup with sliced carrots and black coffee with extra cream, just the way you like it." He wiggled his eyebrows at me while I watched in both awe and shock as he handed me the paper bag. I peaked inside and he was right, chicken soup with sliced carrots, still hot, and black coffee with cream that was about to spill out.

"Percy this is… wow. Thank you." I said, honestly surprised by Percy's thoughtfulness.

Percy shrugged and moved closer to me. "It's no big deal. I always do this kind of thing for my mom and Nico when they are sick. And trust me; Nico can eat a horse when he's sick. I once spent my whole month's allowance on him." he chuckled at the memory and I laughed.

"I'll make sure to remember that." We slowly stopped laughing and locked eyes. Percy moved slowly towards, but he never took his eyes off of me. His eyes always fascinated me to some point. The way they were sometimes sea blue, and then sometimes sea green. When he was sad or angry, they were dark, and when he was happy, they were a light green color.

He was happy right now, that much I could tell.

"You're going to catch the plaque." I told him jokingly when he was only inches away from me. I wanted him to kiss me so badly, he hasn't since the playground, and that was four days ago. I just wanted to taste his lips on mine, get that burning feeling in my throat, like when you eat a chilly pepper.

"We have a quiz in English anyway." He shrugged and crashed his lips on mine.

Now, here's the deal with kisses. They can be sort of… addictive. Especially if the guys you're kissing smells like the sea and his lips taste like apples. I slowly got out from under the covers, and laced my fingers through his longish black hair. His fingers played with my curls that fell out from my loosely tied bun. He sat me in his lap and traced kisses down my jaw, which made me just a little bit breathless and crazy enough to let him continue. But soon I brought his mouth to meet mine, just to get that tingling feeling in my stomach again. His lips fit mine perfectly, like two puzzle pieces you lost under your bed and could never find.

I could never complete my puzzles by the way. I could never find the damn puzzle pieces...

**Percy POV**

I felt Annabeth smile into the kiss, her lips stretching into a grin. It wasn't a big motion, but it was more than enough for me to go crazy and kiss her deeper than I have ever kissed anybody. The kiss was at the same time hot, warm, cold, crazy… It made colors explode in my head and made adrenalin course through my body, making me able to hear the pounding of both of our hearts.

She was so easy to get lost into. I didn't know what was my name or what was I doing when I slowly lowered her on the covers. I forgot about the bet, about Luke… All I could think about was the weirdest and the most special girl in my arms and the way we made each other feel.

I won't even go into how pathetic I sound.

I was kissing her neck when all of a sudden we were interrupted by the sound of the door slamming shut on the floor below. Annabeth and I looked at each other with wide eyes, and her mouth formed an 'o'.

"My window." She said suddenly, making me look at her like she was crazy. Annabeth saw that and rolled her eyes at me. "There's an emergency ladder on it. Go! Quickly! She won't be here long; Susan probably came to check up on me. Go and enter through the front door, but knock first. Go!" she rushed me and lead me to her window. And strangely, a pair of wooden ladders fell down her window and into the garden behind her house.

**Annabeth POV**

Percy was out of my sight in the exact second Susan walked through the door. I whipped around and saw that she was carrying more soup in her hands so I frowned; I was going to turn into a freaking chicken.

Susan smiled at me and put the bowl down. "How are you feeling?" she asked me and touched my forehead. She looked at me worriedly.

"You're very hot Annabeth." The thing she said made me remember my recent, and very hot, make out session with Percy and in embarrassment, I blushed a deep red.

"It's no big deal. It'll probably go down soon. I'll just… go back to bed." On which I made out with Percy. Oh God, I think I just turned redder. I shook my head as I lay on my bed, trying to clear my head. Susan and I turned around when we heard the doorbell ring. I heard Susan cascade down the sitars and soon heard her and Percy's muffled voices. They appeared both on my doorstep and Percy winked at me from behind Susan.

"Percy, dear, would you please go down to the kitchen and bring me those pills for Annabeth? They're on the dining table." She asked him and Percy smiled and disappeared. Susan was kind of fond of Percy; she thought he was a 'lovely young man with the manners of a gentleman'.

Gentleman my ass.

She was just about to leave when she turned around. "Oh, and Annabeth?"

"Yeah?" I looked up at her, and she was smirking.

"The next time Percy goes down your window and shows up on my front door; tell him to at least bring his shoes with him."

* * *

**Whoa, it's kind of hot in here, don't you think? *laughter* I'm quite happy with how this chapter ends... Tell me if you like it :D**

**Oh, and we crossed the hundred reviews line! Cookies and pizza and ice cream and ambrosia for all of you beautiful bottle capped elves! (what?)**

**I don't have a short story for you today (bummer), though Leo sends hellos to you all. So HELLO. Creepy munchkin face reads everything I write, so if I didn't put his greeting in here, he would... nah, he wouldn't do anything, he's kind of scared of me, but that's why we work so well and are best friends :D**

**I hope you liked the chapter, bye!**


	12. Double the Grace

**Read and Review**

* * *

It took me six days to get over that nasty cold. SIX DAYS! I was so behind in my studies, it made me cry. Not to mention Percy, who got sick pretty much half an hour after he left my house. Which was around nine in the evening, since we watched all sorts of movies and then, at Percy's request, Pitch Perfect three times. He says that he watches it because there are hot in it, but I know that he really likes the whole singing thing. I caught him humming a few songs, which always made him blush a deep red. After that I teased him he had a thing for Fat Amy, but he just rolled his eyes at me and told me that even though she's pretty hot, he's taken.

Okay, so he had a way with words.

It was another painful Monday, and I had pretty much spent my weekend doing leftover math homework. Percy was sick as a dog and as much as I wanted to, I couldn't go to his house and babysit his sick butt. I told him he would catch the cold if he kissed me, it's not my fault he can't control himself.

Thalia was back today. I saw her black hair when I walked towards my locker. I ran up behind her and hugged her tightly, but when the girl turned around, I realized it wasn't Thalia. More important, it wasn't even a girl.

"Uhhhh, sorry." I smiled sheepishly but the guy didn't get offended; he wiggled his eyebrows at me, which made me laugh a bit. "Sorry dude, I'm kind of taken. But you should really go to the gym or something. And get a haircut. Please." He grinned at me and walked away, leaving me to stand there trying to control my laughter.

"You're already cheating on Percy, huh?" I heard a voice behind me. I turned around with a huge smile on my face and saw Thalia grinning at me.

"Thalia!" I ran up to her but she stuck her hands out.

"Don't crush me. Calm down." She gestured with her hands. I took a few deep breaths as she commanded me and tried to calm down my breathing.

"You calm? Okay, now we can hug."

"I missed you, you idiot!" I yelled happily and pulled her into a bone crushing hug that she tried to return. I was so happy, like a kid on Christmas. After two weeks and only hanging out with Percy and Nico, I seriously needed my girl best friend back.

"Annabeth? I… can't… breathe…" she struggled against my hug and I eventually let her go. She coughed a few times and took a few breaths, before she grinned again.

"Okay, now I get to hug you. Come here!" she yelled and pulled me into a hug that quickly turned into a headlock. I realized with horror that since I messed up her hair, she was about to do the same thing to me, only with a noogie.

"No! Thalia! Stop it right now! Thalia Grace!" I yelled and struggled but to no avail. When she was done I looked like chickens jumped all over my head. Then Thalia and I hugged properly before we went off to class.

"Oh, news flash! Guess who's coming to visit? Jason!" she said excitedly. I looked at her in surprise. Jason was Thalia's one year younger brother who lived in San Francisco. He was sent to a boarding school there by Thalia's father after him and Thalia's mother divorced. I rarely saw Jason; he came to visit Thalia and their dad maybe once in two-three years or so. He didn't even come for Christmas or Easter which was fairly strange to me.

"How come?" Thalia shrugged as we sat at our table.

"I don't know. Dad told me on the plane. He said that Jason wanted to come to New York for a bit: he says he's been acting weird."

"In what way?" I asked suspiciously.

"Apparently, he's been acting a little wild. You know, fights, suspensions… that kind of crap."

"That doesn't sound like Jason. Don't you remember how he brought me a duck that one time he came to visit? Or how he defended you against that jackass of Ethan when we were on spring break in fifth grade?" I smiled at the memory. He rarely came, but he was always our kind of hero. He was a sweet guy with a brain in his head, so I couldn't picture him sitting in the principal's office for getting into a fight.

"I don't know. But we all go a little crazy sometimes, ain't that right Annabeth? How are you and Percy?" she asked me with a sly smile. I rolled my eyes as I doodled a few drawings in my notebook.

"How are we supposed to be? I mean, you've been gone for two weeks; we haven't gotten married or anything. I'm not even sure we're dating." I said and Thalia laughed. She obviously thought I was kidding, but when she saw my serious face, she smacked her palm to her face.

"Did you just facepalm?" I asked with amusement.

"I just can't believe both of you are so dumb. Well, I knew Percy was, but you? Never crossed my mind. After all that chizz about lying, and you punching him in the face…"

"Wait, how do you know about that? I didn't tell you." I asked her with wide eyes. In my mind I looked for an explanation, until the most obvious one crossed my mind.

"Thalia… did you ask Nico to tell you everything that has been going on around here?" I asked her menacingly. She realized she was caught and looked all over the room except me. I nudged her with my shoulder.

"Thalia Grace, you little… Why didn't you just ask me?"

"I knew you wouldn't tell me everything, like that thing with Percy, so I asked someone I knew would tell me." She shrugged her shoulder.

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Are you telling me you used Nico, who you know would do anything for you, as your snitch?" I asked her, again in amusement. I was spending too much time with Percy; I was starting to look at everything as a joke. I was a butt-scratch and a sock toss away from turning into a guy.

"Maybe. But why don't you worry about Percy, who's at home being run over by a hundred and four degree temperature?" she whispered to me because the teacher walked in. I looked at her one more time.

"Has he been telling you everything?"

"Pretty much."

* * *

"Dad! We're home!" Thalia yelled as we walked into her house. I always loved Thalia's house, even though it was pretty easy to get lost in it. It was a huge two story house, though it had only two stories because Thalia didn't want more. Her father wanted to build a mansion for her and Jason.

Speaking of, a tall, blonde, incredibly hot and tanned guy came running down the stairs. He looked like he was angry, but when he saw Thalia and me; his face broke out in a small grin.

"Thals." He said simply and picked her up in a hug. When he put her down, since he had like seven inches on her, he turned to me.

"Anna-banana." He smirked and I rolled my eyes at the old annoying nickname he gave me.

"Hey Jase." I said and he pulled me into a hug. It was nice, but even though he was achingly good looking, and one of my oldest friends, it still felt like hugging a brother. He finally laughed, and it was like seeing that eight year old kid throwing a rubber spider in my salad all over again. I punched him so hard because of it, it's not even funny.

Okay, yes it is.

"You turned out good." I praised him and he shook his head. His blonde hair flew around his eyes. Jason always had a very army-like haircut, but apparently he changed that. He had the same eye color as Thalia did; that same electric blue. I remember Thalia calling him booger face when we were kids, but that kid was long gone judging by what I was seeing.

"So, what brings you to our boring old city of New York?" I asked him when all three of us huddled up in Thalia's room. Thalia went to her desk, Jason jumped on her bed and I sat on the sofa opposite the plasma TV on the wall.

"A little change. I thought about it, I got pretty tired of San Francisco." He shrugged.

"Really? And I heard your girlfriend dumped you." Thalia piped in and I widened my eyes at her. She shrugged in my way and I couldn't help myself; I threw a pillow at her and hit her straight in the face. Jason's face clouded and turned dark. Suddenly, the energy was sucked out of the room and replaced by tension and awkwardness. Jason got up and went for the door.

"Jason! Wait!" I got up and followed him, but he only stopped at the door and looked at Thalia one last time.

"Don't bring Reyna up. Ever again." He growled and slammed the door shut behind him. I winced slightly at the loud thud the door made.

"Great, Thals. Just great."

I waited Jason to come back to his old self, or at least unlock his door, but after a few hours of waiting, I decided it was best if I went home. I had a bunch of English, history and especially math homework, Mr. Black did not have it easy on Percy and me ever since I proved I was a better teacher then he was.

I said my byes to Thalia and I was just closing the door when I heard someone shouting my name. I turned around and saw Jason running towards the door.

"Annabeth, wait!"

"Hey."

"Hey. So, I just wanted to… apologize for my, uh… outburst. I didn't take the break up very well." He said and I nodded my head.

"Yep, I saw that."

"So, I just wanted to say I was sorry. I'm glad I saw you. You proved ugly duckling was a true story." He added jokingly, making me stop in my tracks.

"Jason!"

He laughed," Sorry Anna-banana. See you tomorrow."

"Wait, how?"

"Oh, didn't Thalia tell you? I enrolled in Goode. Night." He said and closed the door. I stood on the doorway for a few second before turning away.

"Night."

* * *

**Jason's here! I really wanted to bring in some other character, and who is better than the other half of the Grace family? As you can see, he's back and Reyna obviously has something to do with it. O-oh. I'll try to develop a subplot from him coming here; fingers crossed it turns out like in my head.**

**Now, let me ask you a question. Who should I pair Jason with? Should I bring in Piper? Because if I do, I'll make their lives hard too, it's just how I roll. If I bring Piper in, I'll probably make her be friends with Annabeth.**

**There wasn't much Percy in here, except mentions, but he'll be back in the next chapter.**

**Short story time.**

**I am babysitting a bunny. Yeah, you heard me. My neighbors went on a vacation or something, and they left me their gray fur ball. Now, you have to know he is the most adorable thing in the world with the cutest (and biggest) ears. But... HE BITES. Like, everything. He bites my chairs, my table, his cage, even the wall! **

**And when I came home from school yesterday, guess who I found... nibbling on Leo's CD's and their cases that I forgot to put away? Oh yeah, I am so dead. So you better read this story quickly, because when Leo finds out, he. is. going. to. kill. me. and. I won't. be. able. to. write.**

**I'll be hiding in my attic, I hope you like the chapter :D**


	13. When a bell just doesn't do him justice

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* * *

I called Percy before I went to bed. It was already past eleven, since I spent most of my evening doing book report. It was incredibly long, and so boring even I didn't like reading it. Still, I clenched my fists, gritted my teeth and got it over with.

I slowly typed in Percy's number I already knew by heart. He answered after two rings. His voice was raspy, and he sounded sleepy. I cursed silently when I realized I woke him up. If he's anything like me when I'm sick, he will never get enough sleep.

"Hey." I said. I heard my own voice and couldn't believe how soft and gentle it sounded.

"Hey you." Percy choked out and started to cough. It sounded like he choked on his own lung.

"Percy? Are you okay?"

"Next time you're sick, I am so not kissing you." He said and I grinned. I shook my head at his antics, even though he couldn't see me. I got into my bed and covered myself up to my throat.

"Ditto. I'm hanging up now." I teased him. I heard protests from him even before I finished my sentence.

"Whoa, no, I was kidding! Annabeth!" he whined.

"Since when are you such a brat?"

"Since I'm sick as one. Thanks to whom?" he asked me. I could tell he was playing dumb. I had no idea why he did that, he was so smart, yet he acted like such a movie jock. It was one of few things about him that bothered me. I wanted him to show everyone he was smart, but all he did was made the entire generation laugh when the teacher brought him to the front of class to answer a few questions.

"Percy." I said, my tone suggesting he should stop acting or I would really cut him off. It happened before.

"Fine. I'm sorry." He gave in after a few seconds of silence.

"Now seriously. How are you?"

"Well… I still have a fever. And I kind of see double, but I think I'll be okay." He joked again. This time I smiled; it was obviously a part of him to make everything look like a joke, so why try and change him?

"I hope you get better." I said, again all gentle. I don't know what was happening with me! I think Percy heard it too this time, because when he spoke his voice was as gentle as mine, but also worried.

"Annabeth, is everything okay? You sound… weird."

"I'm fine. It's just been a long day I guess. Maybe I was wrong doing book report all day today." I lied.

"Oh man, I haven't even picked up the book!" he yelled and I scowled to myself.

"Are you telling me I will have to help you revise another grade?" I yelled into the phone. Then I remembered Matt and Bobby who were in the room next to mine, and I quieted down.

"Hey, I'm not against it! More alone time." He suggested and I could picture him in my head wriggling his eyebrows and smirking at me.

"Weirdo."

"You know you love my weird ways. Oh, crap! I have to go, my mom's calling me, and I think she's bringing the thermometer with her! Call you tomorrow!" he said and after some shuffling, disconnected the call. I stared at my phone and then with a weird nostalgic feeling, quietly whispered.

"I hope you will."

I didn't know what was wrong with me. I had this weird, empty feeling in my chest that weighted me down. What's worse, the feeling was directly linked with Percy and his absence from school and my life in general. I knew it was, because I didn't feel like this when Thalia was away or even my father or half brothers. No, this was because I haven't seen Percy in almost a week, and I… sweet God, I missed the idiot.

Maybe I didn't really just miss him, maybe there was more to this feeling, but I felt like it was way too early for me to go into it. He and I were trying to become friends just weeks ago. Sure, we were pretty close now, but I didn't want to do anything that would send us back to hating each other. Besides, this thing Percy and I had could turn into a sappy, cheesy Hollywood movie about love and other crap, and I really didn't want that.

So I just turned around in my bed and went to sleep, trying to ignore the feelings that were starting to boil under the surface.

**Percy POV**

"Mom, I'm not kidding, get that thing away from me!" I yelled and pointed my index finger at my mom, who, in fact, was carrying a thermometer with her. She rolled her eyes, grabbed me by the arm and stuffed the little stick in my mouth.

"Perseus Jackson, I swear, you can be such a drag queen sometimes." She said and dragged me back to bed. It was incredible how strong she could be when she tried. She was like a lady version of Rocky.

"Now keep that mouth shut, I need to see how high your temperature is." She instructed and went into the kitchen, probably to bring me more chicken soup. Now I understood why Annabeth ran in the opposite direction when she saw it, that thing was scary after you eat thirty bowls of it every day. For the last five days I have pretty much been unable to do anything but lie in my bed and watch movies. I was constantly sick, with my nose running like a freaking faucet. I regret nothing though; I got this way because of Annabeth and that kiss. I started to like everything that had to do something with her, the flu included. It wasn't the best feeling, true, but the feeling Annabeth gave me made it seem like nothing.

You're getting sappy again Percy…

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. It was awfully hot in the room, and I couldn't really breathe. I didn't know was it because of the fever or that I remembered the kiss in Annabeth's room, and my mind automatically added some parts that didn't happen which were… definitely not PG-13.

I worried about the bet too. I was even starting to consider the possibility of telling Luke that it was over, and that we should forget it ever happened. That way, he would get to keep his car, and I would get to keep… Annabeth. Who was totally falling for me, by the way. I heard it in her voice when she called me a few minutes ago. I don't think I ever heard someone say something with that kind of tone.

It made me feel both happy and doubtful at the same time. The sole idea of her having feelings for me was enough to make me feel like the spawn of Strawberry Shortcake and Barbie, all pink, frilly and happy, but at the same time it meant I would obviously have to break two hearts in the end, because let's admit it, I was slowly getting caught up in this whole thing as well.

I am so screwed…

* * *

Surprisingly, I went to school two days after my talk with Annabeth. I didn't call her yesterday, because Nico came over, after I managed to convince him he wasn't going to catch the flu unless we make out, and brought me homework. At first I thought he got a job as the librarian, considering all the books and notebooks he brought, but then it turned out it was all the things I needed to get done. I kind of wished for a new round of the flu right then and there. I mean, with the dyslexia and ADHD, it wasn't likely I would get all that work done by… my graduation, if I'm lucky.

But I somehow managed to get to school on Wednesday without a piano falling on me, since everything appeared to turn against me. I woke up late; my phone shut down, Gabe gave me a rougher time than usual, I didn't have milk for my cereal and I almost got run over by Nico, who was texting somebody while driving. Then when I got to school I discovered we had a quiz planned for today and a homework I was overdue, so I pretty much wished for the ground to open up and swallow me whole.

To make things worse, I didn't see Annabeth when I first arrived, and she wasn't by her locker. Leo told me she left for class with Thalia and a blonde, very Californian like guy. Okay, so that got me a bit worried, not that I admitted it to Nico when he started to bug the hell out of me. It was weird he didn't get grilled up, considering Thalia also left with the blonde surfer guy.

I checked my schedule to see what I had first period, and when I saw I had chemistry, a grin broke out on my face.

"What are you grinning about Jackson?" Nico asked me as he trudged beside me. He had a silver chain on him today, so he jingled a bit as we walked down the hall.

"Nothing, Cow Boy." I laughed at him when he growled at me and started to rip the chain of his jeans.

"Okay, that's enough! The day just started, if I have to put up with that the whole today, I will kill one of us." He said and angrily dropped the chain into his backpack.

"Nico, dude calm down. I'm just messing with you."

"I'm gonna tell Annabeth." He smirked at me and walked forward. I ran after him.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh come on, like I don't know you were grinning about your class with her." He rolled his eyes.

"Hey, just because Annabeth and I have chemistry…"

"Eh?" His head snapped up and he smirked slyly at me.

"No, I didn't mean it like that... Oh, you know what I mean!" I quickly corrected myself, but the damage was done. Nico nodded mockingly.

"You get to rip on me for Thalia and I don't get to do the same? Oh, Percy and I thought we were equals. That's hurts me, here." He mocked me and pointed at his heart. I rolled my eyes at his stupidity and in a swift movement punched him in the gut. I walked while I was looking at him and then collided into someone. I turned my head around and saw Annabeth grinning at me. I turned my head to the left and saw the guy I have been hearing about. Tall, even taller than me, blonde, tanned, blue eyes…

It got so awkward so fast, that the only thing heard in the hallway was Nico groaning in the back.

* * *

**Happy Valentine's day my sweet watermelon-faced cupids! ****Let me see those hands for all of us that are single. Sad, I know.**

**But don't be sad, it's still an amazing day and we should celebrate all kinds of love. Love for your parents, siblings, friends, phones, laptops, cats... Okay... awkwaaaaard.**

**I don't have a short story for you, but I have something else. See, I got this PM and someone (won't say who) asked me what Leo looks like and is he hot. **

**First of all... Leo is gross to me. But in a good way. He's my best friend and I try not to think of him in any other way. It just gets too complicated. Second of all... Yeah, he's pretty hot. He's six foot tall (just like Percy xD).**** He's not really buff though. He's a naturally thin kind of guy.**** He's got shaggy, short, brown hair and green eyes that get really green when he faces the sun. One thing I'm really jealous about is his tan! Like, I'm a cheese type of girl, so I feel awkward as hell whenever he walks by me.**

**That's the best I can give you. I mean, I don't really know how to describe a person. But, to make him more realistic in your head, Leo's the guy most of the girls in my high school drool over. But back when we were in middle school, not one girl gave him a second look. Then after the summer after the eight grade... boom! **

**God it was weird to write that. He'll rip on me for this one FOREVER.**

**Bye!**


	14. Jealously is a two way street

**Read and Review**

* * *

"Hey." Annabeth said and walked towards me. She gave me a sideways hug and my hand went around her waist. She didn't move; she was stuck to my side, not that I minded. It was kind of my way of telling other guys that like to check her out to kiss my ass. Thalia smirked at me in her usual way; it was the best I got out of her, but according to Annabeth, it means she doesn't hate me.

"Hey Grace." I nodded in her way.

"It's not nice seeing you Perseus." She mocked me and Annabeth laughed.

"Are you two ever going to get along?" she asked us.

"We are." Thalia and I said at the same time. We looked at each other before bursting out in laughter. Annabeth chuckled before she straightened her back. She looked at the blonde guy then back at me.

"Oh, Percy this is Jason. Jason, Percy." She motioned between us with her hands. Jason and I nodded to each other, though it looked like he would like to have my head on a stick and wave around with it. He had a pretty scary look in his eyes, like he could easily annihilate someone if he wanted to. It was comforting to know my gir- Annabeth, spent time with him. Not really.

"And that… is Nico." Annabeth pointed at Nico in the back, who was still clutching his stomach. He smiled sarcastically at Jason. I saw Thalia roll her eyes at Annabeth's suggestive tone. This Jason guy probably knew everything about them. It made me grit my teeth that Annabeth most probably told him, since I didn't have the feeling Thalia liked to gossip, especially about herself.

"Hey." He nodded to him. Thalia snorted and Annabeth started to laugh at her. Both of them exchanged a look and then rolled their eyes in perfect sync. Nico and I also looked at each other, but in confusion. Even Jason looked confused.

"Is this how they work?" Thalia asked.

"Well obviously. Though instructions would come in handy. I mean, who uses head nodding as a greeting? They could have bashed their heads together as well." They laughed, linked their hands together and walked away, leaving Nico, Jason and I puzzled as hell.

"And we're the ones that require instructions?" Nico asked. Jason and I laughed at him and the look on his face.

"Hey, what do you have first period?" I asked him when we finally stopped laughing. With slight mocking to females, I felt closer to the guy. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.

"Uh… history." He said after he pulled out his schedule. Nico and I grimaced.

"Sorry man. We have chemistry that's on the other side of the building but… Hey, Leo!" I yelled after my Hispanic friend that was leaning against his locker. He strode casually to us.

"Sup' Percy?" we fist bumped.

"You have history first period, right?" he nodded, "Can you show Jason where to go? He's a newbie." Leo nodded in understanding and looked at Jason. Soon, they went into the opposite direction of Nico and I, while we looked after them.

"They seem to be hitting it off." Nico pointed out what I was thinking. I nodded.

"Yeah, well, when you're new, you need friends." I said and bumped him with my shoulder.

The truth is, when I first arrived in Goode five years ago, Nico was the first person I talked to. I was having trouble finding math class and somehow wound up in the men's room. Nico was there, playing Angry birds on his phone. When I asked him why he was in the bathroom when he should've been in class, he told me that most people in there are stupid, and that he didn't get on well with them anyway. He did look like a loner to me at the time, but I insisted he came with me to math. Since then, Nico and I have been like brothers. After two days at Goode, I could, without any problem, call him my best friend. He knew everything about me, and it went the other way around too. I slept at his place when I got in a fight with Gabe, and he stayed with me after Bianca died, since his mom was a mess.

Nico laughed at me and shook his head. "You're so sappy, it kills me Percy." He remarked and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Whatever. You know you looooooove me." I mocked him. Nico looked at me with a disgusted look on his face that soon turned into a grin.

"You just keep on telling yourself that."

**Annabeth POV**

Thalia and I walked to class while laughing our butts off. She and I completely forgot about Jason, and didn't remember until we reached the chemistry classroom.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" I asked Thalia as she sat on the desk next to mine and Percy's. Thalia nodded her head and pulled out books from her bag pack.

"Yeah. Besides, we left him with Nico and Percy. I'm sure they'll get one of their hench-monkeys to show him the way to class. They can't be that evil." She wiggled her eyebrows at me.

"Didn't you hear that misery loves company?" I heard Nico's voice from behind me. Thalia and I both turned around and saw both Percy and Nico standing in the doorway, smirking at us.

Nico took his seat in a desk he didn't share with anyone; he paired up when he needed too. I begged Thalia to sit with him, but she always said it would get too awkward. I remembered the conversation I had with Thalia a few days ago, and I turned to Percy.

"Did you know Thalia used Nico as a spy? He reported everything that went on around here all through the two weeks she has been gone." Percy's eyes widened and he laughed in amusement.

"Are you kidding me?" he asked. I shook my head, at which he chuckled and looked at Nico. Nico looked confused and mouthed 'what?' to Percy, who just shook his head at him.

"And I thought you and I was bad." He whispered in my ear, efficiently making a shiver run through my spine as the teacher started to talk.

* * *

Percy and I went to McDonald's after school, since we were both starving. Cafeteria was shut down today; something about roaches in the kitchen, and everyone in school pretty much had cramps from hunger. I could barely focus on any of the lessons with my stomach growling like a hungry animal. I didn't really like McDonald's, none of that stuff they called food was healthy. It was calories and fat in its solid, edible form. But Percy didn't mind, he kept stuffing his mouth with hamburgers and Big mac's, until both of us were out of money.

"How can you eat that much?" I asked him while eating my chocolate muffin. Percy just shrugged and kept on chewing.

"I don't know exactly. It's like I have a lot of room." He said with his mouth full.

"That's real classy Percy. You know, Jason eats just as much as you do, maybe more." I said. It was in my best intention; I wanted Percy and him to become friends. After all, along with Nico, those two were my best guy friends. But Percy didn't take it in that way. He squeezed the burger in his hands and looked at me with anger filled eyes. When he spoke, his voice was heavy and filled with something I couldn't quite understand.

"Oh yeah, Jason's awesome, with his height and muscles and tan that he got in San Francisco, which happens to be the town you would most like to live in besides New York. Long live Jason!" he yelled angrily, threw his burger down on the tray and stomped out the door after grabbing his jacket. I sat there in shock for one second, before I realized that… Percy was jealous. The thought was both exhilarating and weird.

I got up, grabbed my own jacket and ran after him. He was walking with long, fast steps, and I had some trouble catching up with him. Eventually I got tired of waiting for him to stop, so I pulled on his sleeve and made his stop. Percy turned around and his eyes were angry and dark, just like the sea during a storm.

"Perseus Jackson! Will you just stop already, my legs hurt!" I whined a little bit. Percy looked at me for a second before he turned his head around. "Percy, come on. You have nothing to be jealous about."

"Jealous? Jealous? I'm not jealous! I just hate the fact that you spend time with that guy. I hate him and honestly, right now, I kinda hate you a little bit." He said and stomped his foot on the ground, like a kid in a candy shop. I chuckled slightly. I don't know what Percy expected me to do, because he looked at me in disbelief, his eyes wide.

"Why are you laughing?" he asked me like I had gone crazy.

"Percy, what you just described is called jealousy. But you have nothing to be jealous about! Jase and I have known-"

"Oh, now he's Jase. That's just dandy Annabeth." He said. I looked at him for a few seconds, thinking through in my head my next step. I had to be careful, one wrong word and he would just run away. And considering the nerds athletic ability over the one of a swimming captain, I pretty much had no chance of catching up with him. Then I realized something.

Percy had no idea who Jason was.

"Percy…" I said slowly, "do you know what Jason's last name is?" I asked him. He just started dumbly at me before he shook his head. I sighed, maybe he'll let go when he found out Jason was Thalia's brother.

"His last name is Grace." I said and Percy's head snapped.

"Like… Thalia Grace?" I nodded quickly, a grin spreading over my face. But Percy's face was stone solid; it didn't look like that piece of information helped him much.

"What does that mean to me? He's Thalia's brother, so what? You can still be whatever you want with him." He shrugged his shoulders. My head fell in disappointment; I really wished he would get it already. I wanted him to know I really, really liked him, but I didn't want to tell him that. I felt like I would ruin everything.

But when Percy turned around and started to walk away, I knew I had to get this thing over with.

"Wait, Seaweed Brain!" I said and stomped over to him. He turned around with a skeptic look on his face. That look slowly morphed into surprise when I came closer to him. Now only few inches stood between us.

"Your head really is full of seaweed." I said and grabbed him by the neck. I crashed his lips to mine and tried to show him everything I couldn't tell him. His hands were in the air but then slowly lowered down to my hips where they rested in place. I laced my fingers in his black hair; I loved how it felt under my fingertips- gentle but rough at the same time, kind of like Percy.

Our lips moved in perfect sync, it was almost too good to be true. I eventually needed air, so I broke the kiss and instead started to suck up all the oxygen I could. Percy did the same thing, his face was red and his hair tousled. He looked disheveled but somewhat happy.

"So… I'm taking as if you're not into him." Percy said and looked at me. His mouth twitched, and I knew he was holding back a laugh. I started to laugh too, and whacked him on the shoulder.

"Shut up."

"Okay… now that I know that… ah, jeez! Annabeth, it's raining!" Percy yelled and I looked up, after which a raindrop fell into my eye, making me squint at Percy. In a matter of seconds, big rain drops the size of a small grape started to fall. I grabbed Percy's arm and pulled him after me. I saw a tent under which we could hide, but Percy suddenly stopped running and pulled me back. I stumbled in surprise and looked at him. He had a big grin on his face while I wondered what in the world was going on in his head.

"Percy, I know you are an idiot, but what are you doing?"

"Oh come on! Haven't you ever walked around in the rain?" he asked me. I stared at him dumbfounded; has he lost his marbles?

"What?"

"Man, Annabeth, you know what they say: life is nothing without dancing in the rain." He said, grabbed both of my hands and started to spin me around. I could feel the tortillas from McDonald's start to come up, but I tried to ignore it. Instead, I focused on Percy and how we were running around the street like maniacs while it rained. I was super cold from the rain that got to my bones, and a little bit nauseous, but I was having fun. It was one of those things Percy was capable of doing; turning everything into a fun time. We laughed and I screamed when he picked me up and ran around. He lifted me like I weighted five pounds, and I have to give him credit for that.

"Hey, are you cold?" he asked me when I started to chatter a bit.

"Yeah…" I nodded my head. Percy grabbed my hand and we ran under that tent I was going to hid under in the first place. He took of his jacket and then his hoodie. I only had a denim jacket on, and I realized it was a stupid idea in the first place.

"It's a bit wet, but still a lot better than the jacket." He said and put the hoodie around me. I snuggled into the warm, fuzzy material and the fact that it smelled like Percy was only a bonus. Percy chuckled at me as I wrapped myself up in the fabric.

"Better now Chase?" he asked me. I nodded frantically; it was still cold, and I was still in my wet clothes, with or without the jacket.

"A little bit." Percy frowned at me, "What?"

"This is all my fault. I shouldn't have dragged you out on the rain. I'm sorry." He said sheepishly and his shoulders slumped. I somehow moved closer to him and wrapped my hands around him, trying to get us both a little warmer.

"It's not your fault… Okay, it is, but I had fun. The whole dancing in the rain was really the Notebook-like." I said. Percy looked up at me and started to laugh.

"Annabeth, is this your way of telling me you're dying to watch that movie?" he asked me and my eyes widened. It wasn't much from embarrassment as it was from surprise. He kind of did see right through me. I have been dying to watch that movie, I heard so many freaking people say it's amazing. Even Thalia watched it and cried like a baby.

"Maybe." I mumbled. Percy laughed loudly and pulled me even closer to him.

"You know… my mom has it on CD. If you want…" he said and I nodded quickly.

"Yes! I mean… whatever."

"Nice save." Percy rolled his eyes. The rain stopped and we ran for a few blocks until we got to Percy's car.

* * *

"Top or bottom?" Percy said when he pulled out two parts of his pajamas out. I raised my eyebrows at him; ready to kill him, but Percy only laughed and shook his head.

"I'm joking! Your blood pressure can go down now." He mocked me and threw me the top. I caught it clumsily and Percy left the room, leaving me to change. I quickly shuffled out of the bathroom and I found Percy on his bed, pressing the buttons on the remote and setting up the movie.

"Hey, where's your mom?"

"She's working the night shift and Gabe's on a convention of some kind." He shrugged his shoulders and I reeled the movie back in my head, trying to remember what Gabe did.

"Didn't you say he owns an electronics shop?" I asked him when I finally remembered.

"Yeah, that's why I said 'convention of some kind'."

I jumped on his bed and he turned the movie on. I was so into it, but I could see Percy looking at me from the corner of my eye. At first, it was only a few glances directed my way, but soon all he did was staring. I don't think he watched, or wanted to watch the movie. He just kept staring at me and I did my best to ignore it.

But when Allie checked into that hotel to look for Noah, I couldn't take it anymore. I lost my focus on the movie and decided I would get Percy to stop staring at me.

"You're missing the movie." I stated and Percy twitched a little bit.

"What movie? Oh."

I nodded my head as I looked at him, "Yeah, it's going to be over soon." I grabbed the remote and pressed pause, "What's your favorite part?" I asked him simply, and Percy went into panic mode. Even in the dark I could see his ears get all red.

"Well… I liked when that guy said… oh, who am I kidding? You know guys weren't meant to watch or like this!" he yelled and pointed at the screen.

"I know, but why don't you like it?" I teased him and Percy rolled his eyes.

"Ha ha Annabeth. Very funny."

"You know, you're kind of ruining the whole 'romantic atmosphere' this movie brings." I pointed out, at which Percy turned serious again.

"Right… So I wanted to ask you something…" he trailed off. I waited for him to continue, but like a fish out of water, his mouth just kept on opening and closing.

"Percy?"

"Sweet lord, how come this comes so easy on me with Rachel and Calypso but with you it's just so darn hard!?" he said and threw his hands up in frustration. My heart beat just a little faster at his words. He obviously wanted to ask me something I have been dying to hear. I was all ears, but he was so quiet it was unnatural for Percy.

"I just wanted to ask if you would like to… you know…"

"Percy, mentioning you ex-girlfriends in front of the latest girl you're making out with is not the smartest move."

"Annabeth, I am trying to ask you to be my girlfriend, and you're not making it easy for me." He shook his head and I smirked at him.

"I will never, ever make things easy on you Seaweed Brain. Get used to it." I said. Percy was looking at me with a look on his face that said he knew it, and didn't take it that hard.

"And yes."

* * *

**I was so proud of all of you when I read the comments on my last author's note. You guys rock at being single, do you know that?**

**The next chapter brings in a new character! Can anyone guess who it is? I bet you can. And awww, the famous Annabeth quote. I just had to put it in here, I was dying to. I hope you don't mind :)**

**I don't have a short story for you today, but I bring Leo's Happy Valentine's wishes. So Happy Valentine's day from Leo!**

**Bye my amazingsuperextrafantasticbr illiant fans, I hope you liked the chap :D**


	15. The new girl

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* * *

I don't know what in the Earth I expected when I woke up the day after I "watched" the movie with Percy. Maybe I thought that now, since I was Percy Jackson's girlfriend, a miracle would happen. Maybe birds would sing when I walk down the street or a man would hand me a red balloon.

One day into this relationship and I was already going crazy.

Something different happened though. When I walked to class that morning, Percy jogged up from beside me. He kissed my cheek before I could even react. I sent a smile in his way, and he responded with a smile back.

"Hey."

"Why are you in a hurry? The class doesn't start for ten more minutes." Percy said, puzzled. I shrugged and checked to see if I had all of my books.

"We have a test Percy. Or at least I do. I want to repeat the lessons one more time."

"You always do this, yet we both know you'll get a hundred." Percy rolled his eyes at me and threw his hand around my shoulders.

"It doesn't hurt to be sure." I said.

Then I heard a bunch of people yelling, some laughing and some whistling. Percy and I exchanged a look; those sounds could only mean one thing- a fight. We ran down to hallway to where a big crowd was gathered. He and I pushed through many students, until we finally broke out and saw the craziest thing in the world.

Rachel being held down by Luke from ripping some girl's eyes out.

I haven't seen her before in school, she had to be new. She was tall, but shorter than me, with dark skin and chocolate brown hair. She was really pretty, but tomboyish at the same time. By her looks, I had a feeling I just saw another version of me. But right now, she was in the far corner, being pressed by people who were screaming and yelling. She didn't look scared, but she did look uncomfortable as the next guy.

When Rachel broke free from Luke's grasp and darted after the girl, Percy and I both stepped forward. Percy grabbed her by the waist and I swear I heard her growl. She said some very unlady-like things that were not pleasant to the ear.

"Calm down." I said simply to her. Suddenly, everything went silent and even Rachel calmed down in a very murderous way.

"What did you just say?" she spat out at me.

"I said, calm down and leave the poor girl alone." Rachel started to laugh uncontrollably before she turned to Percy.

"This is why you left me? If I had known you were so pathetic to even consider her, I never would have started dating you in the first place." She laughed again and I looked at Percy. He didn't say anything, but his face was very still and he looked like he could kill her with a twitch of his hands. I was calm though, I was used to Rachel and her outbursts, so this didn't faze me one bit.

"Crazy woman." I heard the girl behind me mumble. I turned around and she smirked at me and pointed her head at Rachel. I rolled my eyes to tell her that Rachel was, more or less, a crazy drama queen with no respect for other people.

"You shut up! I can't believe I saw you checking him out!" Rachel screeched again and started to struggle, which made Percy tighten his grip around her.

"I wasn't checking anybody out! What the heck is wrong with you?!" the girl yelled back.

"She's crazy." Percy and I said at the same time, which made Rachel go really crazy.

"You be quiet Annabeth! Just because you got Percy doesn't mean I can't destroy you within a week! And you new girl, if I see you around him one more time I will-"

"Rachel, shut up before I slap you into the next week." I told her. I felt pretty good, standing up for somebody. I knew they treated me like crap for most of my life in Goode, and I wasn't going to let them do it anymore. If I managed to get Percy to at least start to change, I could sure as hell make Rachel believe I would knock her out if I had to.

"What's going on here?" Chiron, our substitute principal broke out through the crowd. His eyes scanned the whole room before they landed on Percy, Rachel and I.

"Annabeth dear, care to explain what's happening around here?" he asked me.

"Well… Percy and I found the room in this condition. Except Rachel was screaming and Luke was holding her back." I felt Percy tense when I mentioned Luke's name. I made a mental note to ask him about it later.

"So you don't know how this started?"

"No sir." Percy and I said at the same time. Chiron's eyes darted towards Luke and Rachel.

"You two, in my office, now." He said simply and walked away. The crowd was starting to clear up and soon the hallway was empty. The only people in it were Percy, the new girl and I.

"I'm gonna head of to class. Catch you later." Percy said, gave me a short kiss, smiled awkwardly at the new girl and went in the direction of the pools. I remembered he had swimming practice as first period.

"So… what did you say your name is?" I asked the girl as I helped her pick her things up. Her back pack was sprawled all over the floor and some of her books and pens fell out.

"I didn't. But it's Piper. Piper McLean. And who is my knight in shining armor that saved me from the big red bad wolf chick?" she said and we started to laugh. I stuck my hand out.

"I'm Annabeth Chase. And the other part of the rescuing team is Percy, my boyfriend." She nodded in understanding. We started to slowly walk to class I knew I was already late. It pained me I would miss my test, but like Percy said; I would most probably get a hundred, so there was no need to worry.

"So, what did you do to get the wrath of Rachel directed at you?" I asked her and Piper rolled her eyes.

"She thinks I was staring at a guy that's either her boyfriend or a guy she obsessively stalks." What she said made me scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. I thought Percy was the current object of her obsession, no other guy with Rachel's standards came to mind.

"Which guy?" Piper stopped to think about it.

"I think his name is Jason something, but I might be wrong. I've only been here a day." She shrugged her shoulders and my eyes widened. I could feel the giant smirk that was spreading over my face.

"Jason Grace?"

"Yeah, I think that's his name. Why?" she asked me, confused.

"Oh, nothing. I know Jason; he's the brother of my best friend." I said. Piper's eyes widened for just a little fraction, but she tried to cover it. Luckily for me, I was good not only at reading books, but at reading people as well. Piper and I walked to class in comfortable silence. I think both of us had a lot on our mind. I was a bit worried over what Rachel would do to me. I remembered that she once placed a dead spider in my locker. I was so scared I couldn't see anything but spots. I had to wait for Thalia to come and get it out before I could think again.

But I felt so sure back there. I wasn't scared of her, in fact, I felt like I could easily stand up to her. It's the strangest thing in the world. I suddenly felt strong and confident and I have never been like that. It was a change I was honestly looking forward to.

"This is me. Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it." Piper said when we reached the Home ec class.

"I'm glad I could help. I think I did some good for me too." I said and Piper nodded in agreement. She looked at me thoughtfully, like she could perfectly understand my "role" in this school.

"I suppose you've had your share of… what's her name again?"

"Rachel."

"Right. I think you had your share of her screaming, am I right?" she smiled and I laughed. I shook my head and played with my hair. I let it down today, just for the heck of it.

"You have no idea. And you know that guy, Percy? He's kind of her ex boyfriend." Piper's forehead scrunched and she gave me a confused look.

"But didn't you say he's your boyfri- oh. That… sucks." I nodded.

"I'm still waiting for her wrath. Hopefully I'll graduate before it does." I said and Piper let out a laugh.

"I can tell why. But Annabeth?" she called after me when I started to walk away. I turned around and saw her standing by the door with her hand on the doorknob.

"Yeah?"

"You don't have to worry about that red-headed freak and Percy. I think you're the only girl he sees. Trust me, I have a knack for things like that." She smiled at me and opened the door. After she disappeared behind it, I started to grin like a maniac, for once feeling happy I came to school.

* * *

Two weeks after the whole incident with Rachel, my life was once again a living hell. She refused to leave me alone for even a second and constantly shot dirty looks in my way. It made me feel guilty because in the end, Percy did break up with her because of me. Not to mention I heard her crying in the girl's bathroom. She made me feel so guilty that I couldn't sleep sometimes.

It was causing a serious ripple between Percy and me.

I just couldn't act like everything's okay when I knew that he hurt a person, even if that person is Rachel, because of me. Every time I saw her I felt like I had kicked a puppy.

Then on a rainy Sunday evening, while Thalia, Piper and I were lounging around in my room, Piper piped up. No pun intended.

"Hey Annabeth?" she called out. I cringed at her tone because I already knew what it meant. When her tone was all sweet and sugary, she wanted to talk about guys. I knew that because in these two weeks I had become quite close with Piper, and Thalia seemed to like her as well.

"Yeah?"

"What's going on between you and Percy?" she asked and Thalia's head snapped up. She looked up at me with a curious look on her face. I think Thalia was slowly warming up to Percy, but she knew something has been awfully wrong for the last few days.

"Nothing is going on." I lied but they saw right through me. Both of them huffed and rolled their eyes at me and my poor lying skills.

"Yeah, and I'm a ballerina. Seriously Annabeth, you have been so cold and distant towards him." Piper said and Thalia nodded her head in agreement. I thought about telling another lie, but decided against it. If anyone could help me, it was them two.

"It's Rachel." I said and both of their faces first looked shocked, then a bit disgusted.

"_She's _the reason you have been avoiding Percy? Oh sweet god, something is seriously wrong with you." Thalia said.

"Thanks Thalia. Your advice and support mean a lot to me." I said sarcastically.

"No, you don't get it. I love you and everything, but the fact that you are letting a crazy chick come between you and the guy you like is crazy. I repeat, just like Rachel." Piper nodded and gave me a sympathetic look.

"I know you feel guilty, but that's just what she wants. I can imagine her laughing with her crazy posse and discussing the next stage of the 'Percabeth break-up' plan."

"The what?" I asked in confusion. What the heck did they come up with now? Thalia rolled her eyes.

"It's a stupid pairing name she came up with Silena for you and Percy. Percabeth…" she shook her head in distant and I couldn't help but laugh. Piper frowned at us.

"Hey! I think it makes sense. They're a couple, it's a couple pairing. See? Sense." She shrugged innocently and I smiled at her. She was so weird and girly when she wanted to be.

"Nico and I aren't a couple and you came up with a name for us." She threw back at her and my eyes widened. I started to excitedly hop up and down.

"What?! What is it? Tell me!" I yelled and Thalia threw a pillow at me and hit me straight in the head. Piper chuckled and picked it up from the floor.

"Thalico." She said simply and I thought about it.

"I think it can work." I nodded and Thalia looked at me.

"No, it can't. It's a pairing name and we are not a pair."

"Sure you are." Piper and I said at the same time, making Thalia blush just a little bit. She hopped of the chair she was sitting on.

"Whatever. While you guys talk nonsense, I have to go home and babysit Jason." She rolled her eyes and I saw that Piper straightened her back; I bet she turned all ears. But when I finally registered the last part of her sentence, I felt worry crawl up my spine.

"What happened to Jason?"

"He got into a fight. He punched Nakamura four times. The guy wound up in a hospital with a slight concussion." She said as she put her jacket on. In a few days it was the first of December and New York got pretty dang cold.

"Oh my God. Now what?" Piper asked a bit horrified. She tried to cover it, but when it came to Jason, both Thalia and I knew she couldn't help herself. She had a big crush on him and because of it math and biology became her favorite subjects, since she had them with him. I asked Jason what he thought of her and he said she was 'cool, but sometimes weird and stutter-y'.

"Well, Mr. D said that if he got into another fight until spring break, he would throw him out. My dad's pissed off; he's threatening to send him back to San Francisco. Although Jason doesn't seem fond of that idea. Now I'm stuck making sure the idiot doesn't try pulling off anything." She huffed and grabbed her phone. "I'm out, talk to you later." She said and closed the door. I heard her saying bye to Susan and then the front door slamming shut.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Piper asked worriedly. I just nodded; I think that if I said anything she would know I was lying. I honestly didn't know, because Jason has been acting weird and tense every time I saw him, and it wasn't like him to be like that. It worried me.

The events of the next day would show me how I should have worried just a little bit more.

* * *

I got up pretty late, because I spent most of my night thinking about how to get near Percy again. I haven't talked to him a few days, and I missed it. I missed him mocking me and me punching him. I avoided him in school and made sure to sit as far from him as I could in class.

But I was determent to talk to him. So when I ran into school that morning, my eyes first landed on Percy who was by his locker. He was talking to Nico and he seemed worried. He had his back turned to me, so Nico saw me first. He elbowed him and nodded his head in my direction, and Percy turned around.

When he saw me walking to him, I didn't know what to get from his face. He was obviously surprised because his eyebrows were up. But other than that, I got nothing. Nico winked at me and walked away to his locker.

"Hey."

"Hey." Percy said without any particular emotion. He thought I was mad at him for something, I realized.

"I'm sorry I avoided you."

"Oh, you did? And I thought my girlfriend running away every time she saw me was a new trend. It's good to know I'm still familiar with how relationships work." He drawled out sarcastically. I fought the urge to roll my eyes; I just wanted to apologize so we could move on.

"I'm really sorry Percy. I don't know how to explain but…" Percy's face softened and he smiled at me.

"You don't have to. Thalia told me." Well I did not see that coming.

"She… she did?" he nodded and opened his locker to get his books. After he fished out trigonometry, he shut the locker tight.

"Yeah. I think she knew you couldn't tell me. But look, you don't have to worry about stupid things like that. Rachel has a way of manipulating people, and right now, you're the puppet she wants. You made people in this school think less of her, and she can't get over that."

"Wait a second. Percy, you dated this girl for what? Four months? Five? How come you think so little of her now?" I asked him, a defense attitude in me getting stronger. Percy looked at me with wide eyes.

"Annabeth, you and I both know that relationship was a shipwreck. She never cared for me anyway, right now she's slobbering all over Luke as far as I can see." He said. I expected him to be jealous if he ever said anything like that, but he wasn't. He sounded like it didn't matter and like he didn't care.

"Wow. I… don't know what to say to that."

"Just say that we're good so we can go back to that amazing thing we had. Remember, the relationship before you started to care about what other people thought?" he asked me with a small smile on his face. I wanted to say that we are good, but something just felt so wrong. Still, I ignored the bad feeling in my stomach and nodded slightly.

"We're good. See you at lunch." I said as the bell rang. He gave me a peck on the lips and disappeared behind a corner. I went to my own class, but then I ran into someone.

I looked up and Luke's blue eyes were looking down at me.

"Can I talk to you?"

* * *

**Oh-oh. Something's about to go down.**

**Will Annabeth find out about the bet?**

**Will Luke tell her or someone else?**

**Will she break up with Percy?**

**Am I just messing with you?**

**So many questions, so little answers. if you want to know what happens next, keep calm and wait for the sixteenth chapter of Better than revenge! :D**

**Special thanks to everyone who reviews or subscribes or favorites. You guys are the best and you make my day, so thank you for that.**

**Much love.**


	16. The wolf in the stall

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* * *

"Uhhh… sure." I said after Luke stared me down. He was a scary guy when he wanted to be and the deadly gleam in his eyes is enough for anyone to get scared. When it comes to me, all he does is scaring me with some plastic snakes or spiders, but other than that nothing. I didn't want to give him an excuse for having a reason to torture me like the rest of people that got on his bad side.

We sat in the planetarium. I sat on one bench and hoped he would sit on the other, but to my bad luck, he sat on the same one I was seated on. He seemed like he was having fun and was comfortable, so I decided to ask him what did he wanted from me, because Luke Castellan has never, ever, asked me to talk to him.

"So… what did you want to talk about?" I asked him after a few seconds of complete silence. He turned to look at me and smiled.

"How are you and Percy doing?" he asked me. I'm sure I looked surprised, because that's how I felt. I didn't think he would ask me that and especially not that he was going to be so straight forward.

"Oh, sorry I'm being so straight forward. I was just wondering, because I know you guys never really got along." He said and I couldn't help but look at him. My eyebrows scrunched at him.

"I never got along with you either, yet here we are." Okay, that came out before I could stop it. Luke's face turned a little bit serious, but after a second it broke out in a grin again. He raised his hands up in defense.

"Whoa! Why are you saying that? I mean, I know we were never friends or something, but we never bit on each other like you and Percy did." He said; his eyes big, round and obviously waiting for me to connect the dots only he could see.

"What do you mean?" I asked him slowly. I was trying to find a way to get out of that place, before I did something I might regret later- hit him.

"Well, it's just seems weird that's he turned into such a friendly mode all of a sudden after he hated you for what… five years? Since he arrived to Goode." He said and I looked at him. The feeling in my stomach was acting up again. But then again, he had a point. I reeled the movie back in my head. One day he hated me, the next he's going out of his way to even talk to me. All the time I was thinking, Luke was looking at me with a content smile on his face.

"Annabeth?" he asked me after some time, but I just raised my hand to shut him up.

"Shhh." I hissed. My mind was going into overdrive. I was looking for a reasonable, rational explanation, but I couldn't come up with one. I didn't know what to think or do, and I didn't like the feeling of not knowing something. I always knew things, even about people I didn't know or like. I was the invisible one in school, who nobody noticed, but I noticed everything.

I was just about to tell Luke off, since I was tired of thinking through every little thing Percy ever said or did, I promised myself I wouldn't doubt in him anymore, when a tanned girl with black hair tied in a braid came into the planetarium. She had a steely look in her eyes and when she spoke, her voice radiated confidence and power.

"Have you seen Jason Grace?" she growled at us. I threw a look at Luke and he seemed a bit dazed. I felt a bit awkward, but collected myself and turned to the unknown girl.

"Why are you looking for him?" I asked her. She frowned at me and looked at me from head to toe and then smirked.

"And who is asking?"

"I'm Annabeth Chase. If you know Jason, you have to know about me." I told her and her face morphed into a mask of surprise.

"You're Annabeth? Thalia's best friend?" now I was the one who was surprised. I thought that maybe I knew this girl, but I think I would remember an attitude like hers. I would remember her in general.

"Okay, you seem to know a lot about me. I don't even know your name."

"I'm Reyna." She said and smirked at me. My eyes almost fell out of my head. This was the girl who left Jason and turned him into a mess. I felt angry and I wanted to rip that girl's braid off.

"Awesome. I'm gonna go now, I don't want to talk to you." I hissed at her and picked up my books. Luke got up and grabbed my arm.

"Will you just think about what I said?" he asked me seriously.

"Look dude, I don't know you and you don't know me. By the looks of it, I don't think you know Percy either. So no, I'm not gonna think about it. Bye." I said and quickly shuffled out of the room. I left both Reyna and Luke with stunned looks on their faces.

I was so done with people like them.

**Percy POV**

To say I was surprised and taken aback when Annabeth told me Luke wanted to talk to her would be an understatement of a millennium. When I asked her what he wanted to talk about, she told me he kept on telling her how my behavior was weird, and how she should really think our relationship through and the reason behind it. At first, I waited her to blow up at me, break my heart and spine and move on with her life. Instead, Annabeth told me he was an idiot and that she trusts me, after which she strode of to class.

I have never liked that girl more than I did at that moment.

Still, I was pissed off at Luke, and ready to bash his head into the nearest lamp post. When I saw him walking through the halls, laughing with Rachel and a tanned girl I didn't know, I was ready to kill him. I walked to him, grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pushed him into the men's room. He didn't even try to protest, he knew this would happen.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I hissed at him and Luke just smirked at me. He leaned back casually at the wall and looked at me with a carefree look on his face. I wanted to punch that smirk of his face so badly but I couldn't afford myself to lose control like that.

"Oh no, did little Annabeth break up with you after she realized you were using her? Oops, I guess I win." he mocked me and I gritted my teeth. I squeezed my fists tight, trying to control the anger that was bubbling.

"Just so you know, she said she trusts me and that she doesn't care what an idiot like you told her." I spat at him and the smirk was finally off his face. He pushed himself of the wall.

"What? She can't be that stupid."

"Luke, god damn it, this wasn't a part of the bet! You said I had a chance until spring break, you can't do this now!" I yelled at him and slammed my fist on the door of one of the bathroom stalls. Luke laughed at me.

"But Perseus, I never said sabotage wasn't included. If I went and told Annabeth right now you're with her only because of a bet, do you really think it would matter to her how much time you got? She wouldn't even look at you again, let alone fall for you. I must give you that though, she really seems hooked. This is why I have to stop it now. I really love my car." He drawled out grinned at me with a very sick-looking smile.

"You can't do that." I said the only thing I could come up with. The thought of Annabeth hating me forever was too much for me to handle. I couldn't stand the thought of never talking to her, never kissing her again or running my fingers through her curls when I was bored. I heard Luke laugh and I snapped from my thoughts. He was looking at me in disbelief and amusement.

"You're kidding me. Please don't tell me you are falling for her." When I didn't say anything and didn't even try to protest, Luke laughed louder and harder. "You have! Oh, this is rich; Percy Jackson has fallen for the biggest social reject in our school. Well Percy, you really know how to make a bet interesting." He clapped his hands and looked at me.

"Okay, I won't tell her. Yet. But if she finds out by any other source that isn't my mouth, I'm not being held responsible. Got it?" he asked me and after a few seconds of think about it, I gave in and nodded in defeat.

"Whatever. Sure." Luke laughed again and walked out of the room, while I sat in a chair in the far corner of the room and placed my head in my hands. I was going crazy. I didn't even ask him to call the bet off, he just gets me so grilled up I forget how to think clearly. I was sitting in silence for a few seconds before I heard some shuffling and in a panic attack that someone heard Luke's and mine conversation, I flew up from the chair.

To my utter horror and surprise, Thalia was standing in front of me. Thalia's face was indescribable and she looked at me under her eyelids. She seemed to be frowning and I swear I almost passed the hell out. This was like my worst nightmare, the only thing that could make this situation any worse is if Annabeth came out from another stall.

"Th- Thalia?"I stuttered. I was blinking rapidly and breathing heavily. Well I was, until Thalia opened her mouth and the oxygen got cut off from both my brain and lungs. I couldn't think straight; I just waited for her to tell me she would tell Annabeth the second she saw her. But Thalia closed her mouth and took a deep breath. Then she asked me a question I wasn't sure how to answer.

"Are you in love with her?" she asked me in cold, steel-like voice. I caught my breath, what was I supposed to say? I didn't know! I don't think I knew what real, romantic love is. So that's what I said, because I knew that if I lied I would only give her one more reason to run to Annabeth like she probably wanted to.

"I… I don't know. Maybe." I shrugged and fell to her mercy.

"Could you live without her?" she asked me again and I looked at her. She was looking at me with a strong expression, one I couldn't exactly figure out. I thought about her question. Could I live without Annabeth? Could I stand not to look at her, or tease her just to get that reaction out of her that I love to see so much? Could I live without the occasional smack on the head she sometimes gave me because of my stupid questions?

"I could, but I didn't want to." I said finally and Thalia nodded.

"Okay, then. Here's what's going to happen. You are going to be everything she wants you to. If she wants a ballerina, you're going to be it. If she wants a hero, you're going to be it. She can never know about this stupid bet, it will break her heart. And you are going to call it off, I don't care how or when, but I expect you to, otherwise I will break every bone in your body and then feed you to my dog. If you really don't want to live without her, you're going to do everything in your power to stop her from getting hurt. Got it?" she asked threateningly and I nodded quickly.

"You… you won't tell her?" I asked her slowly. Thalia looked uneasy for a second, before she turned cold again.

"I wouldn't be able to hurt her so much. She has been through enough crap in her life, she doesn't need any more. If she's going to hear it from anyone, ever, it will be from you, because you're the most to blame. I mean, making a bet… Stupid empty-headed idiot!" she said and in a flash of anger, punched me in the gut. I felt my lunch rise up from the blow she gave me. Right then I heard someone else walk through the door and Nico winced when he heard the sound of her fist connecting with my stomach.

"Perce? Are you okay?" he asked slowly as soon as Thalia stomped out. She didn't give me a second look as the door slammed shut behind her.

"I've been getting hit a lot lately." I groaned out as I slowly straightened my back.

"What happened?" he asked me.

"She knows. Thalia knows about the bet." I managed to get out.

"Shit. Well that kind of ruined the plan, didn't it?" he asked me and I nodded before I thought of something.

"Wait a second, do you know why was she in the stall anyway?" I asked him suspiciously. Nico looked at me for a second with a puzzled look on his pale face. He shook his head slowly and then spoke out with a dark tone.

"How the hell am I supposed to know that?"

* * *

**Sweet potatoes, what happened you might ask? Well, Thalia knows about the bet! I'll explain how she wound up in the men's room I swear.**

**And don't worry, I'll explain everything in the next few chapters. Thalia is also going to be very tempted to tell Annabeth the truth, especially as the blonde begins to fall for Percy more and more. What will happen? Find out in the next chapter!**

**Loooooove you :D**


	17. Jason against Annabeth's brain

**Read and Review**

* * *

"Okay, so let me get this straight. You and Thalia made out in the bathroom?"I asked Nico later that day while he was driving me home. To my surprise, he slammed on the brakes and sent me flying forward. He was looking at me with that deadly look on his face again and it seemed kind of scary along with his black hair that fell over his face and that crazy glint in his eyes.

"Percy, don't screw around with me. I just spent the last ten minutes telling you how she told me she was waiting for Jason to come because he got into another fight or something. Stupid." he rolled his eyes and started the car again.

"How in the world does that make any sense?" I asked him incredulously. Nico shook his head and let it drop on the steering wheel, making a thumping noise. It occurred to me that it wasn't his smartest idea to do that while driving.

"Look, I don't know. I don't even know what you were expecting to hear from me!" he said and shook his head crazily.

"I was expecting that you were making out Thalia in the bathroom!" I yelled at him. I loved teasing Nico; he knew I was joking, but it still earned me a few smacks sometimes. Nico sighed and looked at me. He rubbed the tip of his nose, something he always did when he was close to killing someone. I thought how it was a better idea to walk home. Being in a small, cramped space with an annoyed and deadly Nico was just like being in a small, cramped space with a deadly Thalia. I guess they did make a good couple after all.

"How about you just go home dude? I'm this close to kicking you out." He squeezed his fingers together and I frowned.

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you tomorrow." I said and quickly made my way out of his car. I didn't even realize we had reached my building. I threw the backpack over my shoulder and slowly took time to my apartment. As I climbed up a few flights of stairs I thought about the mess I made of my life. I fell for a girl I wasn't supposed to and that same girl will kill me once she finds out I have gotten together with her because of a bet. She will be hurt and she will hate me, which will hurt me.

As I climbed up the few flights of stairs, I cursed the day I made that bet with Luke.

**Annabeth POV**

A bad winter storm caught New York. It was the end of the first week in December when it started and it caught us all by surprise. It arrived unexpectedly, over night, and nobody was prepared for what it brought. It was snow, rain and hell in general. The school was shut down for a little bit over a week. The whole city suffered from the lack of electricity and the heating system went to Tartarus. I had never been so miserable in my life. I couldn't even go to the library. I didn't see Percy or Thalia or Piper or Nico for days, and I was getting seriously anti-social again.

When we were finally allowed back to school, it was middle of December. When I walked in school on that first day, all frozen and chattering, the first thing I saw was a giant poster that invited everyone to the Winter Formal.

Somebody snuck up to me behind my back and when they put their arms around me, I knew that somebody was Percy. He was warm and smelled nicely, so I relaxed into his hug and let his warmth envelop me. Percy and I have been better than ever. Even though we couldn't see each other because of the storm, we still talked on the phone for hours. Well, we did when we had reception. The talks were about everything and anything, and they were probably some of the best in my life.

"I missed you." He whispered in my ear and I nodded in return.

"Ditto." I turned around in his arms so I was facing him.

"This week and a half has been a catastrophe." I concluded and Percy laughed.

"Because you couldn't go to the library and read more bibles?" he mocked me. He always made fun of me and my 'light reading'. I shook my head and smacked his arm jokingly.

"No. Well okay, yes. But more importantly, because I couldn't see you." I told him honestly and he smiled at me. He was biting his lower lip, which I found incredibly hot. He was looking at me with a weird look in his eyes, one I have seen only once in my life, but I couldn't put my finger on it when.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked him and he shook his head.

"I'm just really glad you're here right now." He said and lowered his lips on mine. It was a simple kiss, but so special it literally took my breath away and made me go weak in the knees. The short and chaste kiss quickly turned into something I hoped none of our teachers saw. I guess after two weeks of not seeing each other, our feelings were bottled up.

"Whoa, okay, PDA guys. Cut it out." I heard Nico's voice and Percy and I broke the kiss. We turned around and saw Nico and Thalia standing there with a bunch of books in their hands. Thalia was smirking at us while Nico looked flat out uncomfortable. I chuckled at their faces and Percy rolled his eyes.

"Oh, look who's talking." He mocked them and I burst out laughing. Thalia's mouth formed and 'o' and Nico's eyes widened. They looked even funnier especially when they turned a little bit red. Percy told me about how he started to mess with Nico and tease him for making out with Thalia in the bathroom. It was a lie, but when Thalia heard it, I had to hold her back from ripping Percy's tongue out.

"Shut up, bottle head." Thalia hissed and I laughed harder. Soon Percy joined me as well and we were pretty much rolling on the floor.

"Such kids."

"Spoiled brats." Nico and Thalia said at the same time and stalked off to whatever class they had.

* * *

I caught Jason in the hallway as he tried to run out of school. I reacted quickly before he could see me and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him backwards. I turned him to face me and he looked pretty furious. He wriggled to free himself, but I had a pretty tight grip, so he gave up eventually.

"Annabeth! Let me go!" he demanded and I shook my head.

"So you can cut school? How about no?" I rolled my eyes at his dumbness. Jason huffed and his eyes looked like lightening, just like Thalia's got when she was angry. I tried my best not to fall under his anger; I couldn't let him run out of school away. Thalia told me he did it a lot.

"Why are you so desperate to cut school anyway?" I asked him when he finally calmed down. He seemed reluctant at first to tell me, but just like him I had a way of getting people to do what I wanted. I gripped his shirt tighter and pulled him towards me. "Talk. Now." I commanded. Jason sighed and said only two words that told me everything.

"She's here." He said and looked down. I instantly realized what's going on. That girl, Reyna, who cheated on him, was here. I heard from Thalia that she was trying to get close to him again, and was doing everything she could to get his attention. I didn't understand why she did that, but Jason obviously did and he ran in the opposite direction every time he saw her.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"What's there to talk about Annabeth? She made me think she loved me and then she went off and cheated on me with some guy. I don't even know his name. I just have to get away from her, because she is making me fell…" he stopped talking. I sent him a sympathetic look.

"Like you would go back to her?" I asked him and he nodded.

"And I really don't want that. So please just let me go home. I promise I won't get into any trouble." He smiled lightly at me and made me loosen the grip on his shirt. He smiled gratefully at me and ran away. I caught sight of Connor Stoll, one of Percy's friends who was pretty cool and called him.

"Hey Connor!" he walked to me with that sarcastic smile on his face and a silly gleam in his eyes.

"Sup Annabeth?" he nodded and I smiled at him.

"Can I ask you for a favor?" he nodded and waited for me to tell him what I wanted, "You know Jason Grace? Could you just like follow him for a bit? If he does anything stupid just call either me or Thalia or Leo." I asked him and he nodded eagerly. I knew he was kind of a daredevil along with his brother Travis and liked to do things like this.

The fact I told Connor to call Leo wasn't crazy. The truth is, them two became really good friends. I saw them walking around school and eating lunch together, and it warmed my heart up, no matter hot pathetic that sounds. them two reminded me a lot of Nico and Percy.

"Sure. Where did he go?" I pointed in the direction Jason ran off a few minutes ago. Connor nodded and jogged away quickly. He was fast, just like his brother when they set the chemistry lab on fire two years ago.

"I appreciate it!" I yelled after him, but he was already gone around a corner. I sighed and hoped Jason wouldn't do anything crazy, especially now that he and Piper were getting along. She called me a few days ago and told me they spent the entire day together, doing god knows what. The only problem now was Reyna. I debated whether I should or shouldn't do something about her, and then decided I should. Jason was like a brother of mine and I hated seeing him to miserable.

I was greeted by the stupid Winter Formal poster again when I walked to class. I frowned to myself; I never went to these things. They were stupid; at least for all of us single people. Then I remembered I wasn't single this year. I had Percy, but that meant nothing since he didn't ask me to the dance.

"Would you like to go with me?" I heard someone's voice. I turned around and saw Percy smiling at me. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"How did you know what I was thinking? Okay, what number am I thinking of?" I teased him and Percy rolled his eyes. He walked closer to me and patted my head like I was either a little kid or a dog. I didn't know which one I preferred.

"Annabeth, you weren't thinking it. You were talking out loud." He said and I could feel my cheeks get hot. I smiled sheepishly at him and he laughed at me.

"Sorry. Thalia told me I do that sometimes but I never trusted her."

"She's a sharp one alright. So, will you?" he asked me and I nodded after a few seconds.

"Yeah." I nodded and Percy grinned widely at me.

"I'd kiss you but I have to go. I have swimming practice." He said and while he still held my hand, started to walk away. He came back a second later and pressed his warm lips on mine.

"I thought you said you had to go." I mumbled into the kiss. Percy shrugged and grinned at me.

"They'll wait." He said and continued to plant kisses on my face, making me giggle against my will.

* * *

I was walking home when someone grabbed me by the hand and pulled me into a pretty cramped street. I was about to start screaming and beat the carp out of whoever it was, when I saw it was Reyna. I was so surprised I couldn't talk for a second. She was looking at like she was waiting for me to say something, but when I stayed quiet, she rolled her eyes. Okay, maybe I was silent for more than a second.

"I knew you were weird, but this is ridiculous." She said and stared at her nails. They were long, sharp, red and looked like they could rip your throat out in a second.

"What do you want?" I asked when the initial shock passed.

"I wanted to say… I'm sorry." She said and my eyes just about fell out of my head.

"What?" I asked her in disbelief and she shook her head.

"I realized that the way I acted was nothing like me. I didn't mean to hurt or offend anyone; the only thing I want is to get Jason back." She said and I realized she was telling the truth. Still, it didn't justify what she did, at least not in my mind.

"What am I supposed to do about it?" I asked her and she smiled at me, for real.

"Help me. Tell him I'm sorry and that he should come back with me to San Francisco. He'll be better off there anyway, than he is here surrounded by Thalia and all those weirdos." Okay, that struck a nerve. The fact she called Thalia and me weirdos while she was asking for my help was not only disrespectful, but also very stupid.

"Wow. Thanks Reyna for calling me and my closest friends weird, I didn't know it before. Now I'm gonna go home and continue to be weird." I said sarcastically. She started to protest, but I just turned around and walked away. I was at my breaking point; I think that if I saw Rachel or anyone else who's so annoying at that point, I would kill someone.

* * *

Percy and I got together the next day. We were in my kitchen, making cupcakes for the exact same dance he asked me to yesterday. It looked like a huge flour bomb fell from the sky and covered my kitchen with white powder. Some eggs fell from the counter and were sprawled all over the floor. I honestly hoped Susan would leave us alone until we managed to clean up everything. If she saw the state the kitchen was, she would most likely have a heart attack.

"Is this sturdy enough?" Percy asked and flipped over a bowl of icing before I could scream at him not to. The paste fell from the bowl in a second and the whole table was painted in a light blue color. We were supposed to make cupcakes with blue icing, because blue was theme color of the party. Thalia was forced into the decorating committee and she told me that every little thing was blue.

"Nice one genius." I laughed at him and his stunned face.

"I swear I have no idea how that happened." He pointed at the mess. I shook my head.

"Don't worry, I'll tell Matt and Bobby to clean it up. Little boogers make good cleaning ladies." I told him and he laughed. He nodded his head.

"I can tell why."

"Okay. Will you try this one?" I handed him a chocolate cupcake. He bit on it and some frosting stayed on his nose. I started to crack up at him and Percy frowned for a second before he probably realized what was happening. He grinned at me and he grazed his finger along the cupcake. His finger was covered in frosting and I started to back away.

"Percy! Percy, no! Percy, stop it! Jackson!" I yelled and ran but he caught me and started to smear icing all over my face. By the time he was done I was full of icing and he was laughing contently.

"You are so dead." I hissed at him, but he just laughed and grabbed one of the cupcakes.

"Okay, but before you kill me, can I at least eat this little fellow?" he asked me and before I could react, stuffed the cupcake in his mouth. I traced his hand that was on the tray with the cupcakes with my eyes and I started to feel panic.

"Percy? Where did you get that cupcake?" I asked him slowly and he looked funnily at me.

"This tray? Why?" he asked me and he turned a little serious when he saw how freaked out I was. "Annabeth? What's wrong?" he asked me, a bit panicky too.

"Percy, those cupcakes have almonds!" I yelled at him. I waited for him to scream or pass out or something.

"So?" he shrugged like a real idiot he was.

"You are allergic to almonds you moron!"

* * *

**Oh Percy, you can't eat everything you find! Didn't your mother teach you that? Tsk, tsk, tsk.**

**Short story time. Yaaay.**

**So, Leo came back. Yeah, the little booger brought my books back and was grinning widely when he handed them to me. Leo is a ridiculously fast reader, by the way. He read the entire Harry Potter series in a week while we were on spring break. Weirdo.**

**So, he handed me my books and I pulled on them to take them to safety, but he didn't let me. So I g****ave him a -what-the-hell-are-you-doing-do-you-want-me-to-rip-your-hair-out-look but he just grinned and shook his head. **

***insert a deep voice here* ****"Where are my CDs?" He asked me. He obviously didn't read the memo in which I wrote what happened with the bunny... So when I brought him his CDs back, I expected him to stuff me in a box and throw me to Tartarus but... *cue the drum roll* he didn't! He groaned, but said he missed his crazy idiot blonde (me) and hugged me. **

**Therefore, this chapter (and the next fifty) is dedicated to Leo, because he is such an amazing best friend I love and because he didn't kill your writer!**

**I looove you crazy cookies :D**


	18. Annabeth's blimp theory

**Read and Review**

* * *

"Okay, let's not panic… How allergic are you to almonds?" I asked him and he seemed to think about it for a second. I waited and then he looked at me with a sheepish smile on his face.

"Well once I ate an almond and my face blew up to a size of a watermelon." Well that's just awesome. I smacked my palm to my forehead and went to pick up Susan's car keys. I jerked my head and started to put my jacket on.

"Wait, how do you even know I'm allergic to almonds?" he asked me with a frown.

"Your mother told me!"

"She did?"

"Yeah, when I was at your house for dinner and she asked me if I was allergic to anything, when I said no she said 'Well Percy's really allergic to almonds. My boy's head swells up like a London double-decker'" i mimicked his mother's voice. Percy looked at me with wide eyes.

"Double-decker? Sweet God."

"Yep, life's cruel. Come on, we have to get to you a hospital." I said and that's when Percy really started to panic. He started to shake like a drug addict without any morphine. I just ignored him and his protests and continued to push him out the door. We walked quickly to Susan's Mercedes my dad bought her for their anniversary (ugh) and I practically pushed Percy in through the trunk when he started to resist.

"Percy, stop being a child and get the heck in!" I yelled at him. That's when I saw Bobby standing on the doorway, looking at Percy and me with a confused look on his face.

"Sup' Bobes?" I called him by my favorite nickname for him. He cocked his head and continued to look at us.

"What are you doing Annie?" he asked me using that stupid nickname Thalia came up with. I wanted to choke her sometimes for even thinking of it.

"Nothing. Percy's just… sick. I have to take him to a hospital. Will you tell Sus- I mean mom, where I am?" he nodded quickly, his hair flying around his face. I smiled at him; I always liked him just a tad better than Matt, who once pulled out a pair of my old sweatpants with the line 'Wide load' written on the butt and ran around the street with it.

"He looks fine to me." He said simply and shrugged.

"Give him a few minutes. His head will swell up so badly you'll think it's a blimp." I said and Bobby began to jump excitedly and laugh.

"Cool! I want to see!" he clapped his hands together and I rolled my eyes at the little twerp.

"Sorry kid, only I get to see the big blimp head. I have to go, just tell your mom where I am." I said and sat in the driver's seat. Percy was looking at me with his eyes narrowed. Or at least I think his eyes were narrowed. His face was really starting to swell up and he began to look more and more like a pumpkin. If it wasn't kind of scary, I would already be on the floor. I could only picture Thalia's reaction to this. She wouldn't stop laughing until August.

"You don't consider Susan your mom, don't you?" he asked me when we got on the highway. I shrugged and looked at him for a second.

"Do you consider Gabe your dad?"

"I don't consider him to be human. But you know, whatever." He shrugged and relaxed into the seat. I was getting a bit worried, the last thing I needed was him passing out. I wanted to shake him awake but I didn't want to look away from the road. So I turned on the radio and turned up the music. I laughed when Percy groaned as Billy Joe Armstrong started to scream his lungs out. I smiled to myself, I drove Thalia to school, and I should have remembered this was her hand's work.

"Are you trying to kill me?" Percy asked me and I pretended to be shocked.

"Please don't tell me you don't like Green Day. I might as well break up with you now, because when Thalia founds out, you'll be a dead man." I shrugged at him. Percy wriggled in his seat and turned to me.

"It's not that I don't like him, but you have to admit that sometimes you get fed up with listening to the same old thing over and over again. I mean, Nico likes Green Day too, and I know—"

"Every single one of their songs? Yeah, ditto."

"We're friends with the most bizarre couple to be."

* * *

"Who do I need to call? Your mom?" I asked Percy as a few doctors pushed him around the hospital in a cart. Percy shook his head, which was pretty much balloon-sized by now.

"No… call Nico. They know us around here. I don't want to worry my mom, she's working." I wanted to ask him why, but then I remembered that Nico's mom works in the hospital when she's not volunteering in the school infirmary. Still, I thought it was sweet Percy didn't want to upset his mom. I quickly found Nico's number and waited for him to pick up. While I was waiting I saw that the nurse was about to take Percy's blood, and since I don't think I would be able to get through that, I looked away.

Nico answered after a few long rings, his mellow, sleepy voice echoing through the speaker.

"What?" he all but growled into the phone. I laughed at him; he really wasn't a morning person. Of course, it wasn't morning, it was six thirty in the afternoon and his best friend was about to have his head popped with a needle.

"Percy's in trouble."

**Nico POV (:D)**

"What are you talking about Annabeth?" I asked the blond who dared to wake me up from my afternoon nap that I so conveniently merged with my night's sleep. I heard her chuckle on the other side on the line and I wondered why she was calling me out of all people. Then I remembered that she said Percy was in trouble, which meant Percy has done something stupid, and it did seem logical for her to call the best friend. I had to change that title, I swear to god.

"He's in the hospital." Okay, I'll admit that made me jerk up from my bed.

"What happened?" I asked as I pulled my shirt over my head and tried to put shoes on my feet. I looked around the room quickly, looking for my car keys. My eyes landed on the part of the room that was once Bianca's and I couldn't do anything about the nostalgic feeling that started to spread through my body. I rarely talked about it, but I missed Bianca. I missed her so much.

"He ate a cupcake with almonds." She choked out. At first I thought she was crying, but then I heard she was laughing manically. I'm pretty sure it was a defense mechanism of some kind to her. She probably wanted to scream or cry or whatever she did when she was afraid for someone. It was so Percy-like to do something so stupid like eat a thing he's highly allergic to. Even I know that.

"I'll be there in five to ten minutes. Depends on how stupid people will drive today. See you." I said and cut the call.

I got to hospital half an hour later, fuming, crazy and angry out of my mind.

"Stupid, incompetent, dense, moronic human race…" I muttered to myself when I ran into Annabeth. She was cracking her knuckles and was tapping her foot furiously on the ground.

"Ten minutes, huh?"

"Calm down Blondie. It's not my fault ninety percent of people in this city don't know how to drive!" I said calmly and went down the hall. Annabeth paced a bit, I was pretty quick when I wanted to be.

"How do you know where—never mind." She stopped herself when she saw the look on my face. I shook my head and went up to Macy, one of the nurses on this floor. She smiled when she saw me and I just nodded my head at her.

"Do you know where my mom is?" I asked and she pointed at one of the rooms, and judging by how quickly Annabeth walked in, I would say it was also Percy's room.

My mom was in there, bending over Percy who was still in his bed. I was just to make a sarcastic remark or tease him or laugh, when she moved away, and every word died in my throat.

"Percy?"

"Unngh." He squeezed out. I couldn't help but frown at what I was seeing. Percy's face has swollen up and was bigger about three times it usual size. His eyes had dark circles around them and his hair was ruffled. His neck was pretty big too; it looked a little bit like a tree trunk. To me, he looked like a big panda bear.

"Mom, will Percy be okay?" I asked after a few seconds of looking at him. My mom nodded and wrote something down on Percy's chart.

"He will be. We gave him some medications and ran some tests, but it will take some time for the swelling to go down. I have to go honey; I'll see you at dinner." She hugged me and walked through the door while I cringed at her use of the word 'honey.' Beside me, Annabeth slightly chuckled at my mom showing her affection.

"You're an idiot, you know that right?" I asked Percy after everyone walked out of the room and only Annabeth and I were inside. Percy stirred and mumbled something incoherently.

"Mmmph." Annabeth raised her eyebrows.

"I think it means, 'I know, Annabeth and you always tell me that.'" Annabeth said in a low voice. Her impersonation of Percy made me laugh slightly.

"You should laugh more often." Annabeth and I whipped our heads and saw Thalia leaning on the door frame, her arms folded on her chest. Annabeth's eyes widened I kept a neutral look on my face, even though the 'compliment' she gave me was kind of making my head hazy. It's not my fault she wears so much eye liner that make her eyes pop out and those eyes are just… Okay, just kill yourself now.

"Thalia? What are you doing here?" Annabeth asked, puzzled. Thalia shrugged, walked in, pulled up a chair and sat between Annabeth and me.

"I had to draw blood. Routine checkup." I noticed she had a small cotton pad on the inner side of her forearm.

"What happened to Kelp face?" she jerked her head.

"Ate an almond muffin."

"Stuffed his face with food he's allergic to." Annabeth and I said at the same time. She whipped towards me and narrowed her eyes.

"It wasn't a muffin. It's a cupcake."

"Whatever. Potato, potato." I waved my hand dismissively. I rolled my eyes and heard a sound come out of Percy. I presume he was trying to laugh.

* * *

We were with Percy that whole night. And I do mean whole. Like, we didn't leave until the next day, and that was only for an hour to shower and change our clothes. He had a pretty bad reaction, especially because the cupcakes they were making had almond aroma as well. So it was like a double blow. When we came back, we were freshly clothed, but still dead tired and hungry. I didn't get a wink of the night before, because we kept being woken up by alarms and all kinds of crap like that. Not to mention that nurses started to pile up in rooms just a little after six thirty.

We all agreed not to go to school that day, even Thalia. We stayed with Percy and we watched six out of ten seasons of Smallville. His swelling was going down slowly, but at the end of the day you could see some improvement. His head wasn't as blown up as it was a day before.

"I'm sick of this. I'm gonna go and... watch someone giving birth. Anything's better than this." Thalia got out of her chair, cracked her neck and walked out of the room, leaving me, Percy and Annabeth to watch Lana and what's-his-name ogle at each other.

"She's supportive." Percy choked out. He could finally talk since this morning and I was glad he could for the first time. I was getting tired of playing mime and 'what did Percy say?'

"Tell me about it." Annabeth rolled her eyes and snuggled closer to him. I made a disgusted face at them; they were so into each it made me sick sometimes. I got up and deiced to find Thalia. Of course, I hoped she wouldn't really be watching someone giving birth. I think it was a little over the top, even for her. Instead, I found her watching something else - newborns.

"Thalia?" I said quietly, even though I didn't know why. I mean, it's not like they could hear me, there was a thick glass separating us from the babies. Her back straightened and she whipped around. She visibly relaxed when she saw it was me.

"Oh, it's you."

"Way to be optimistic about it." I said dryly and walked to stand next to her.

"Look who's talking. Mister glass-is-always-empty." She bobbed her head back and forth as she spoke.

"Hey! Sometimes it's half empty, not just empty."I said and she laughed. Her laugh was a nice change from the usual growling Thalia showed to everybody.

"Why are you out here anyway?" I asked her when she stopped grinning. She looked sad again, and I didn't like it when Thalia, the roughest, strongest person I have met in my life showed sadness.

"No reason. I just got bored with superman in the making."

"No, I mean why are you here, looking at new born kids?" I explained and Thalia looked at me with a wary look. She rolled her eyes and turned her look back at the babies.

"You just can't help yourself in being so blunt in everything, can't you?"

I shrugged and shoved my hands in my pockets, "It's one of my better traits."

"Funny. It's just that… they're so happy." She pointed at the babies. I scrunched my eyebrows and sent her a questioning look.

"I don't think they can feel anything." Then Thalia surprised me by nodding.

"Exactly. They don't have a father that doesn't care and a mother who didn't even tell me where she is right now. That much she cares. Then add an idiotic brother who's more stupid than necessary and takes five billion years to get over a petty heartbreak. You know that he's about a sneeze away from getting kicked out of Goode?" she asked me and I shook my head. I didn't know what to say to her, but I figured that since she told me something she obviously kept to herself, I could only do the same thing in return.

"Well the father situation, in my case, is pretty much the same thing. I visit him once a year and then I'm stuck with his current wife, who, and I'm not exaggerating this, hates my guts. My mom works sixteen hours of the day and my sister…" I trailed of, not really into talking about it.

"I'm sorry." She said and put her hand on my forearm. She caught me by surprise and I slightly jerked backward, but then I relaxed when I got used to how warm her hand was. I was a naturally cold guy; I remember in health class when we were taught how to share body heat and I thought how I barely had enough for myself, let alone to keep someone else warm.

"It's not your fault. Although I would love to have a chat with that Emerson guy." I said, though it came out strangely like a growl. Oops.

"I can only imagine. Well, I guess me wanting to kill that Reyna chick is something in that caliber." She cracked a grin which made me do the same thing. We stood there like a pair of idiots, grinning at each other, when we heard a scream and a few loud thumps. Thalia and I exchanged a look and darted to where the scream came from.

We ran to a flight of stairs and to our horror, saw Annabeth at the end of the staircase, gripping her foot and trying to hold back a few blood piercing screams.

* * *

**Do you know how fun it is for me to write in Nico's POV? I find him one of the most complex characters in the series, and he seems to always have a lot on his mind. He can be smart, funny, sarcastic, deadbeat, deadly, sweet... I love him so much. Next chapter brings a new POV... any guesses?**

**Short story time.**

**See, they like making us suffer in my school. We have to do a lot of projects and go on all sorts of competitions. It brings you... how do I say it? Points, I guess. Now the thing you need to know is that I run track. Like, a lot. It's not something I consider my sport, but I'm pretty fast and can withstand a lot of running. Leo also runs track, he's the one who made me sign up in the first place. Now, we were practicing, and at one point, get this, HE TRIPPED ME. **

**I fell and bend my leg in an awful angle and now... it's cracked. broken. I swear on the river Styx, as soon as I can walk again without the crutches, I shall kill him with those exact crutches and feed him to Mrs. O'Leary. But, before I sign off and continue to plot my revenge, I will tell you this, since all of you crazies started to ship us (like what?). After I fell and started to wail so hard they could hear me in Beijing, he pickedmeupandcarriedmetothei nfirmary. **


	19. He brings back-up

**Read and Review**

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**Thalia's POV**

"Holy crap! Annabeth!" Nico and I both hurled down the stairs and towards Annabeth, who was rocking back and forth biting her lip to keep the screams down. Some nurses, doctors and even regular people ran towards her, and tried to help her up. It was a pretty stupid of the doctors to do that; didn't they see she obviously hurt her leg?

"Ow! God, it hurts!" she wailed after some time. A few doctors pulled up a wheel chair, and we put her in it and they quickly started to look for a room for her. Nico and I exchanged looks; I knew we were both thinking of the same thing. We walked to one of the doctors.

"I'm sorry Mr.… Schmidt. Okay, then. Uhhhh, our friend there, Annabeth… well you don't have to look for a room for her." He gave us both a crazy look, like he couldn't believe he had to deal with a bunch of kids.

Well too freaking bad for his ass then.

"The patient in the room 188, he has a bed that is completely patient-free." I said and strained myself, trying to hold back the laughter that almost erupted out of me. Nico realized this guy needed more convincing and he seemed more than pleasant to get the job done.

"Yeah. So you don't need to go and look for spare beds or whatever. I'm sure my mom will be able to take care of Annabeth and Perseus. She's like… whoa." He shuddered slightly and I grinned a tiny bit at him and his acting. In the end, the doctor seemed convinced, and told one of the male nurses to transport Annabeth to room 188. Nico and I didn't even look at each other, but I moved my fist up a bit and when I felt it bump against his' I cracked a huge grin I couldn't keep in anymore.

Annabeth and Percy are going to love this. Not.

* * *

"You two are stupid." Annabeth concluded later that day, while she was seated on her bed next to Percy's and with her leg in that hanger thingy that hangs from the ceiling. Percy nodded, or at least I think he did. He looked much better though, almost like his old self.

"Why? We thought it may be a good idea for you two to bunk for a while. And if you get out of this hospital in one piece and still a couple, then you'll…"

"Get our blessing." I finished Nico's little speech. He nodded seriously but I could see his throat constricting every now and then; he was holding back a laugh. I jabbed him with my elbow to stop him from cracking up because that would make me crack up.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes and snuggled herself up in the blanket.

"Oh, come on! We thought you would like to share a room! Like, a normal couple would do that!" I said when either of them refused to look at us. Nico looked at me lazily and rolled his eyes.

"Why are you even worrying about it? They'll probably end up making out the second we walk out of the room." He smirked and caught the pillow Percy threw at him without even looking.

"Nice." I applauded. Nico threw a wary look at me.

"I just know how he thinks. That's all." He shrugged and turned around. Okay, so that was rude. I thought we were hitting it off back there. We were all talky with each other and now he doesn't even look at me.

Screw him.

"Whatever." I said defensively and crossed my arms on my chest. Annabeth obviously saw the change in my attitude and raised her eyebrows at me. I shook my head and mouthed 'later' to her, before I remembered she wasn't getting out of here tonight. They wanted to keep her in for the night, just to see if the fall did her some brain damage. She seemed fine to me, I didn't have a feeling she had internal bleeding or something.

Nico and I walked slowly to our cars. Annabeth and Percy made us go home, saying they would call the nurses and accuse us of molesting them. I didn't think two Goths had a chance to win that fight.

It was deadly cold. I wasn't usually a person to complain and I had a pretty high tolerance to cold, but I was freezing. I had my aviator jacket on and a black sweater underneath, but I still started to chatter after walking five feet away from the hospital. I cursed myself and my stupidity for parking so far away from the hospital. Sometimes I could be really like those girls who spend their days bouncing all over the school while doing their nails. Nico walked soundly beside me, trying to keep up with my pace I was picking up, just to get to my car. After a few long, cold seconds he sighed, and started to take off his bulky jacket. I started to protest and was about to kick him in the curve, but he just threw the jacket over my shoulders and shook his head.

"Just shut up for once Thalia."

* * *

Something woke me up in the middle of the night. A thud. It was really loud, since even I could hear it. I was about to go back to sleep when I heard someone whisper something. I rolled my eyes; people just didn't know they were being loud when they tried to be silent. I dug my way out through the heavy blankets and quietly put my slippers on. I moved across the room and cracked the door open. I stuck my head out and squinted.

"Piper?" I asked. I could hear the shock that reflected in my voice. Her head whipped around and her eyes bugged out when she saw me. I got out of my room completely and leaned on my doorway with a sly smirk on my face. She wriggled in her place and played with her hands nervously.

"What'cha doin'?"

"Uh… no-nothing. Jason and I were…" I shook my head quickly and waved my hands.

"Nope, I don't want to know." Piper blushed a deep red and her eyes widened even more.

"NO! No, no, no, no, no, no, no and no. It's not what you're thinking. We were just hanging out." She shook her head furiously like a maniac and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Really? Nine no's? Where is my dumb brother anyway?" she seemed to turn even more red at the sole mention of Jason.

"He's sleeping."

"Wow. Okay, no details, please. And by the way, you didn't have to sneak around. This house is empty by night. No one's here beside Jason and I." I shrugged and went back into my room, shutting the door tightly behind me. I jumped on my bed and took a deep breath. Okay. Piper and Jason. I could live with that. As long as they don't show their… affection, like Percy and Annabeth did sometimes. They would leave Nico and I blind for a few hours.

Stupid love struck kids.

**Nico's POV**

Friday after school, after I dropped Thalia off at her house, I went to pick up Percy. He was finally being released from the hospital, a day after they signed Annabeth's release papers. Turns out, they did survive 'living' together. In fact, they seemed to be more into each other than I have ever seen them. It bothered me to be honest, especially because Percy was keen on keeping up with the stupid bet. He is convinced that Annabeth won't find out and that he could forfeit a few weeks before spring break, when it was due. Now that Thalia knew, things got even worse. The day Annabeth got released, I heard them (by an accident) in the girl's bathroom, and Thalia was about to spill the beans. I couldn't let her do that, so I ran in there and pretended I went through the wrong door.

Thalia, of course, knew what I was doing and gave me a wash afterwards. I could see the guilt that was eating her alive and I think she wished she never found out in the first place. It was hard for me too; I wanted to tell Annabeth every time I saw her laugh at something Percy said. She was a good friend of mine, and knowing what happened to Bianca, I was desperate to stop it from happening again.

Percy was back to his old self. His hair finally covered all of his head, instead of a little piece that wasn't all blown up. He was carrying his bag in his hands and when he got into my car, he took a deep breath.

"Happy to feel the car smell?" I asked him, amused. Percy just nodded and leaned his head on the cushion. "Whatever PPP." I snorted at him and started my car. Percy opened one of his eyes.

"What?"

"PPP. It stands for Power Puff Percy. Thalia and I came up with it."

"Thalia and you? Oh yeah, Annabeth told me you two have been spending a lot of time together." He said and wriggled his eyebrows which earned him a smack over the head.

"Hey! Why do you keep hitting me?" He complained and rubbed the back of his head.

"Why do you keep being annoying? The answers we'll never know." I shrugged.

"Jackass."

"Moron."

"Goth chick."

"Kelp head."

"Good to be back." He cracked a grin at me.

"Good to have you back."

* * *

"Nico! Nico, did you hear?" Thalia ran over to me while I was getting my books for my next class. I gave her a half smile. She was on a sugar rush, but the bad kind. Not to mention she was obviously mad and about to kill someone. I raised my biology book in front on me slowly, so she wouldn't pick up on my intentions of trying to protect my vital organs if she decided I served as a punching bag.

"Considering you're very mad about it, I'd say no. What's up?"

"Oh, I'll tell you what will be down! Jason, when I bash that empty head of his' on something solid! Like a marble floor!" she yelled and slammed her fist on my locker. There was a dent in it now and I almost felt bad for it.

"Thals, calm down. Or I'll need to pay for a new locker." I lightly pushed her away from all the other lockers. She seemed to calm down and was taking deep breaths by now.

"Right. Calm. I'm calm."

"What happened?" I asked, getting seriously curios as to what Jason did that was so bad that Thalia wanted to bash his head.

"Well, the gym got flooded during the weekend, so they were about to cancel the dance. But Jason, trying to get rid of Reyna, proposed we have the winter formal in our apartment!" she yelled, angry again.

"Don't you have a house?" I asked her and she looked at me with a surprised look on her face.

"That's all you got? Yeah, we have a house we live in, but my dad also owns a few apartments around town. There's a penthouse in one of the bigger buildings and he offered to have it there. Mrs. Aphrodite jumped on the opportunity, and now she'll organize the whole thing!" she yelled and threw her hands up. I could understand why she was angry. I mean, if someone evaded my house and threw an all-pink party, I would be pretty pissed off too.

"Well one thing's for sure."

"What?"

"You won't have an excuse not to go." I grinned mocking at her, at which she narrowed her eyes and socked me in the shoulder. Then she smiled smugly to herself.

"You just mock, Dead boy. I'll find a way to drag you there."

"Not without me kicking and screaming." I replied at her threat. She looked at me for one more second with those eyes and then got up in a flash.

"If that's what it takes."

I sat there, looking after a girl that was positively the most confusing thing in the world - and I took AP math. I was running over any possibility that might occur to her that she would use to get me to the dance, when somebody cleared their throat behind me. I turned around only to see Luke standing there, leaned against the lockers and with his hands in his pockets.

"Wow di Angelo. You and Thalia, huh? Nice." He nodded his head and really made the bubble of disgust pop.

"What do you want now? I think Percy told you everything."

"Yeah. But I also heard you and Grace talking awhile back. I don't remember saying anything about being able to tell other people. I find it cheating, since Thalia could easily influence Annabeth's opinion of our dear Percy. It could also flare some feelings up, and we don't want that." He drawled out and I tiredly gave him a look.

"What's your point? Thalia found out by accident." Luke shrugged and cocked his head.

"No matter. But since Percy told someone, I only found it fair to share our little secret as well." Okay, I didn't see that coming. It caught me by surprise, and I was honestly starting to feel a little panicked. I didn't want Annabeth or Percy to get hurt by this nut job.

"Who did you tell?"

He opened his mouth just when a girl stepped out from behind him. Her face was practically glowing like a light bulb by the sudden information she could use to torture other people. She had a small… rasp in her hand and was running it up and down her finger nails. What? I don't know the proper term for cubicle care and… Shut up.

"You know Rachel, right?"

Oh crap… We're screwed.

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**Luke just raised the bar. What will Rachel do? **

**I hope you liked Thalia's POV. For some reason I find it easier to write in Nico and Thalia's POV. I didn't put any Percy or Annabeth in here since they were technically in a hospital, so I don't think I could write something interesting based on that. BTW, I'm basing Annabeth's injury on my own, since I have a broken leg that annoys me greatly.**

**I don't have a short story for you, because like I said, I have a broken leg and have spent the whole day and night in my bed. The only thing remotely interesting I could tell you about was when Leo came by and my little brother kicked him in... his special little boy place while they were playing and rolling on the floor. I don't think he did it on purpose, but I'm pretty sure Leo still saw the stars. _  
_**

**And that's it! I hope you liked the chapter :)**


	20. Trash bags are the latest fashion

**Read and Review**

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"Why did you tell her?" I exploded at Luke. He smirked at me and Rachel grinned.

"I only wanted to even out the playing field. If he has someone on his side that could help him, it was only fair I told someone who could help me. Besides, what could poor little Rachel do?" he said in a mocking tone that would instantly elevate anybody's blood pressure. Rachel rolled her eyes beside Luke and shoved him when she stepped forward.

"Don't talk about me like I am not here, Luke. And you," she pointed her skinny, manicured finger at me; "you better tell Percy that I am not over how he humiliated me. And by the time winter formal rolls around, I will make sure him and his little nerd are good as gone." She said, flipped her hair and stalked away, Luke chuckling as he followed her.

"Talk about being a..."

"Thalia." I said in a warning tone and she stopped talking. She walked out from her hiding place, the corner, and frowned at me. I knew she was there from the beginning, I heard her come back just a second before Luke started to portray the plaque. Although, thinking about it,I would rather settle with the plaque.

"Why don't you let me insult her? I have a few very graphic names that really stick with you."

"I'm sure Pinecone face." I smirked at her and got a hold of my books. Thalia cocked her head at me.

"I thought you were more violent."

"Why?"

"Well because of your attitude and everything. The whole I-hate-the-world-thing." She shrugged and I shook my head as we walked to class.

"Just because I don't care about this school and people in it, doesn't mean I'm pure evil." I explained and then caught a sight of her face, and she seemed bothered and sad about something.

**Annabeth POV**

If you ever thought a broken limb wasn't a problem, you are horribly mistaken. I couldn't go to school because of the pains and couldn't practically do anything else. I was always in my room, watching movies on my laptop and waiting for Thalia to come and bring me homework. Sometimes she came with hands full of schoolwork, and sometimes she either forgot or didn't care about homework. Percy sometimes stopped by after school, but we mostly talked on the phone, because he was also trying to catch up with the work we were, once again, behind.

On the other hand, winter formal was approaching faster and faster. It was only a few days away and now there was no chance for me to go. That's too bad, because I had already chosen a dress and shoes and everything. I was a pre-planner.

The dress itself was beautiful. Royal blue with silver sequins around the bust. It was knee high, and after the corset, spread into a flowy skirt. The shoes were silver, but since I had a feeling I wouldn't be able to survive in high heels, I got flats. I was going to put my hair in a bun, but again, I wasn't going because of my foot.

I refused to admit it made me feel just a little down. I wasn't a girl that was into these kinds of things, but I am still a girl. Something in my DNA has to love shoes and dresses and slow dances, because that's the only explanation to why I would want to go.

Those kinds of thoughts went through and around my head for a whole week, until I found myself waking up the morning before the dance. I looked around my room and saw it was a mess. Clothes thrown around, my books covering the floor, my bed sheets crumbled and tossed near my bed. I quickly reached for my phone and dialed Thalia's number.

It's a Friday, and Thalia told me they had a day off. For what reason, I don't know. All she said was that some girls started a frenzy, saying there was no way the dance could be arranged and set up in a day. Thalia also told me Jason made sure they had the dance in one of their apartments, which pretty much made her blow her top off. I was in her suite one time actually. It's a giant apartment that stretches out through the entire top floor. It has its own roof top actually, and it's probably one of the most amazing places I have ever been at. You can literally count millions of stars. It's one of the rare places in New York you're able to do that.

Thalia quickly picked up, although I had an image of her in my head, where she sprung out of her bed and reached for her phone, ready to tear someone's ears off.

"Hello?" her voice was raspy and quiet. I obviously woke her up, which only made the next sentence that came out of my mouth more dangerous.

"Did you buy a dress?"

"Excuse me?" she asked and I swear she sounded almost offended.

"For the winter formal. Did you buy yourself a dress?" I heard her make a gagging noise in the background.

"No. I don't need that crap, I'm not going." She said simply and yawned loudly. Thalia's manners were always questionable.

"Why not? Oh come on, Thalia! Live a little!"

"I don't have a date Annabeth. And besides, why would I want to spend my night listening to bad pop music, drinking smelly punch and being in the same room with a bunch of crazy estrogen and testosterone filled teenager morons?"

"Way to be descriptive about it."

"Whatever."

"And about you not having a date…" I trailed off in a suggestive tone. She should ask Nico if he hasn't asked her! It's only logical.

"NO! Annabeth, get that thought out of your head before I come over there and smack it out of you!" she yelled and I could picture her pointing her finger at me.

"I'll be waiting for you with French toast and coffee."

"Ugh, fine."

* * *

Half an hour later, a scruffy looking Thalia walked into my kitchen, looking like she had been run over by a tractor. She gave me a smirk and grabbed the cup of coffee. After she chugged half of it, it looked like she was feeling better.

"Good morning." She finally said.

"Good morning." I smiled at her. "Okay, back to the dance."

"Oh God! This is why you called me, isn't it?!" she accused me and stuffed some French toast in her mouth.

"But you have to go! Just because I can't—"

"And why can't you?" I gave her a surprised look ad then looked at my foot that was in a cast. Then I looked back at her.

"You're kidding me, right?" Thalia rolled her eyes and eyed my foot carefully.

"Honestly Annie, you are acting like you lost your foot, not broke it. You could easily go to the dance." She wriggled her eyebrows.

"And make an idiot of myself with those dang crutches?"

"You could beat Rachel up with them. After what she and Luke did last we—" she stopped her rant and looked at me with wide eyes, but then tried to cover it by putting her poker face on.

"Thalia… what happened last week?" I cocked my head at her suspiciously.

"Nothing. Nico just had a run in with them and that's it."

"No it's not. I know when you're lying. What were they fighting about?"

"How do you know they were fighting?" she replied and I rolled my eyes.

"Because I have some common sense! And what does Rachel have to do with it?" I cornered her and got closer. Thalia backed away, becoming slightly nervous.

"Annabeth, it's nothing, really. Just a fight they got in over a b—" she said and slapped her palm on her mouth.

"Over what?"

"Nothing!"

"Thalia, tell me!" I was slowly starting to yell as I got closer, hopping in her direction on my right foot. Thalia's patience bubble probably popped, and she suddenly looked like she was done with the subject.

"Annabeth. It's nothing. I don't want to talk about it anymore, so just let it go." She growled at me with a tone that made me stop pushing her. But I could still get something out of her keeping things from me.

"I'll let it go if you go to the dance."

"What? No fair!" I shrugged.

"I don't care."

"Fine, but only if you go dress shopping with me, otherwise I might just show up there wearing a trash bag."

**Thalia POV**

I can't believe I almost blurted everything out! Like, one second, I'm eating my French toast in peace. The next, she's trying to suffocate me because of a small mistake I made. I didn't mean to mention what happened with Nico, Rachel and Luke, but I always told her everything, so this kind of popped right out of me.

We were driving to the mall, and for a second I almost needed directions, since I forgot where it was. That just proves how often I went there. Annabeth somehow got out of the car after a lot of pulling and groaning. We equipped her with the crutches and made our way to the big building swarmed by teenagers. Shopping in New York is insanity. The stores are packed, clothes are all trashed and thrown around and frankly, people are evil and pushy. This mean old lady kept pushing me up the moving staircase, and I was tempted to trip her, but Annabeth's look said 'Don't you dare,' so the mean lady was saved.

"How about this one?" Annabeth said and held out a mustard colored dress.

"No way in hell."

"This one?" she pulled up a slimy green one.

"Not even if Billy Joe asked me to wear it."

"This one?" An odd grey piece of fabric.

"I'd rather go with the trash bag."

"Ugh. Whatever. This one?" she pulled out a frilly pink dress. I was so done with her.

"For crying out loud Annabeth! You have worse taste than my grandmother! How did you choose your own dress? Because that thing is hot." Annabeth grinned widely at me. I waited her to say that maybe Percy helped her, but she just kept grinning.

"Actually, Bobby and Matt helped me."

"What?"

"Yeah, I showed them dresses and they said yes or no."

"Sweet God. Are you happy now? Two nine year olds have a better taste than you!" I accused her and snatched the dress out of her hands. She frowned at me and gave me her usual smart ass look, the one I always got when she knew something I didn't, or was challenging me.

"Well if my taste sucks, do you know anyone else who will help you pick out a dress?" I thought about it for a minute, before I pulled my phone out of my jeans pocket.

"I have a pretty good idea."

Twenty minutes later, Piper and Jason walked into the store. They looked for us with their eyes and Annabeth and I waved at them.

"Okay, it was a good idea to call Piper. She'll know what to pick, and even if she denies it, she has good taste." I put my finger on my chin.

"Hmmm, not really. I called Jase."

"Jason?!" Annabeth barked out a laugh.

"Hey." The two of them walked over to us. I looked at Jason.

"Since you organized that moronic dance, can you help me find a dress? I don't know how, and Annabeth couldn't pick a dress to save her life." Jason gave me a wary and bored look.

"You mean to tell me I just drove ten minutes here and spend the last ten looking for parking space just so I could find you a dress?" he asked me incredulously.

"Yep." His head hung low. He lifted it back up and scratched the back of his neck.

"Give me five minutes." He said and got lost in the pile hangers and the dresses.

"I want something dark – and he's gone." I said but caught myself in the middle of the sentence.. I smiled smugly at Annabeth and sat down on one of the stools. I had no idea how she thought this would work out. I mean, I love Jason and all, but it seemed pretty crazy he would find a dress for me in ten minutes when we couldn't find one in two and half hours. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

But Jason came back a few minutes later, five according to Piper, just like he said. He was carrying a sly black dress with white flounces stretching from the sides. The dress was also knee high and looked incredible. I think even Annabeth got excited for the dance at that moment. I got up and grasped the dress with my hands. I probably looked as if I was ready to go to the dance with the dress as my date.

"Well I'll be damned." Annabeth said simply.

"Told you. Jason is like a cold. He bothers you and makes your nose run, but he also has some good uses, like you can contaminate others and skip school." I grinned wickedly at him and Jason rolled his eyes.

"Wow, thanks sis for comparing me with a cold." He said and we all laughed at him.

"Whatever. Can we go and eat something now? Annabeth and I have been in here for over two hours. My stomach is like a garbage disposal someone put a screw in." I said and we all walked towards the cash register for me to pay the dress.

"You're full of comparisons today, aren't you?" Annabeth asked me in amusement. I winked at her slightly.

"Loaded."

* * *

The next afternoon, Annabeth and I were in her house, laying around and watching the Discovery channel. I was dying from boredom. The only thing I could do was sigh and roll around my couch. Annabeth, on the other hand, found the documentary about ancient Rome so interesting that she couldn't tear her eyes of the screen.

Susan walked in and positioned herself in front of the screen, making Annabeth unable to see anything. She craned my neck desperately trying to see the television, but Susan was keen on not letting her see anything.

"Susaaan." she whined, but Susan just shook her head at her.

"When do you plan to get ready for the dance?" she asked us and we spoke at the same time.

"I'm not going."

"When the hell freezes over."

Susan rolled her eyes at us. "You two are being ridiculous! This is a dance a memory you'll have forever and you're not going!"

"But it's so boring!"

"And overrated!"

"I don't care! I want you both to go up there and put those dresses on!" she commanded us and we slowly went upstairs to get ready. Annabeth took even longer, since it was probably hard to go upstairs with the cast and everything. I accidentally left my dress with Annabeth yesterday, so I could put it on now. I wasn't really enthusiastic about it.

"Why are you so moody?" Annabeth asked me as she stepped into her dress.

"I… I don't have a date! I'll end up with those guys who date their computers in the back of the room!" I yelled and angrily zipped up my dress.

"Hey, those are the perks of being the wallflower." She tried to make a joke, but I just shot her a dark look.

"I'm shutting up now."

"Good choice."

At seven o'clock, Annabeth and I looked like we were pushed straight out of Barbie's make up salon. We had our dresses on, and looked pretty hot. I wanted to put on a pair of black Converse to go with my dress, but after an hour of fighting with Annabeth over it, she convinced me not to do it. Instead, she brought out a pair of Susan's black strapless high heels. At first I was looked at them with so much hate I thought they would set on fire, but when I saw how tall they made me look, I started to warm up to them.

We heard someone knock on the door and ring the bell. Annabeth and I looked at each other and I darted out of the room, while Annabeth hopped slowly behind me. I got to the stairs just in time to see Susan open the door, revealing Percy behind it. And just when I caught myself frowning over disappointment of nobody coming with him… Nico stepped out.

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**Can I do an 'aw'? The next chapter's the dance ;) And of course, it's not going to be like the rest of them. I'll try to make it funny from Nico's and Thalia's POV. Oooohhh, I'm excited!**

**And I really want to tell you that this Saturday... is my high school party thingy! Not yay. I don't have a date and just like Thalia, I would rather wear a trash bag to it. So I'm thinking I'll stay home and write a chapter or two. Anyone have an idea on what to do so I don't feel all that sad and lonely?  
**

**Man, this author's note got real depressive, real fast. To lighten up the mood, my turtles say "Hi, we hoped you liked the chapter!"**

**Okay, they didn't actually say that... but whatever. **

**So, I've seen some reviews and got some PM's in which you guys are asking me what my name is. So I decided to tell you. It's Apple. No, I'm just messing with you. It's Al. It's short for something, but I'm so embarrassed to say what. You'll just have to live with me.**

**Love you all :D**


	21. High up

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Nico POV**

I can't believe I got myself into this… Stupid Percy and his begging. But I'm even more stupid because I can't say no to the petty idiot. He assured me I would have fun, or when I told him I know I won't, he objected by saying that at least I won't spend my Saturday night cramped up in my room watching TV.

Then he brought out the big guns. He said I'll get to mock other people and maybe Thalia will like me more. That got my neck to turn red but I tried to shake him off. But no matter how much I fought with him and threw pillows and other crap at him, he was still persistent. In the end, when he realized I wasn't going to give up that easily, he tried to one mode he never used. The honest one.

"Nico come on. We both know you're dying to see Thalia in that dress just as much as I want to see Annabeth. And I really need this. I know I'm a jackass most of the time but just… please." He begged. At first I didn't even give him a look, but then I felt something close to satisfaction. I was right before, Percy was falling in love with Annabeth. It (along with Thalia) was the only thing that made me decide to go.

"Ugh, fine. But I don't have a…"

"A tux? Give me a second." He said and ran out of my house. I heard him slam the car door shut and a few seconds later he appeared with a tux in his hands. I gave him a dark look.

"You had this planned, didn't you?" I accused him.

"Maybe." He cracked a toothy grin at me, "but I meant everything I said. I swear on your car."

"Never swear on my car Percy. I already told you that."

* * *

Half an hour later, after I managed to put on the tux, though I ditched the dress pants and put on a pair of dark jeans, Percy and I were driving towards Annabeth's house. Percy talked about how he was planning on calling off the bet, and something he said caught my interest.

"I think I'm to ask Annabeth to the Night under the stars thing with me." He said suddenly.

"You are?" I asked him kind of surprised. The Night under the stars was a thing when our whole generation went to hill a little bit outside of New York. Everybody went up there and watched the stars. They stayed at a hotel and were gone the next day. I never went to that, girls invited me, but I had no interest to watch the stars while some girl hopped up on perfume stuck her tongue down my throat.

"Yeah, I think I will."

"I don't think it's a good idea Percy. I mean, what's going to happen when she finds out about the bet? Because you know she will eventually." I asked him and he turned silent. We drove in silence for a while and I cranked up the music. I parked in front of Annabeth's house and we slowly climbed out. I was starting to feel nervous, but tried not to show it.

Percy literally hopped off to her front door. I rolled my eyes at him; he could act like such a girl sometimes.

Annabeth's step mom opened the door for us and I walked out from behind Percy. At the top of the staircase stood a girl in black dress. She looked beautiful, but I couldn't help but wonder where Thalia is. And then it hit me. No, Percy actually hit me. I realized I didn't answer something Susan asked me.

"Sorry?" I asked awkwardly and she smiled at me.

"Do you want to come in?" I nodded slightly and Percy grinned at me as we piled in.

"Shut up."

"The girls are… here." She said and we turned around. It finally dawned on me that the beautiful on top of the stairs was Thalia. She climbed down and smirked at me.

"Close your mouth Dead boy." She said and I cracked a grin.

"Uhhhh…"

"I didn't hear you screaming or saw you kicking." She grinned at me and I remembered our little chat.

"Trust me, Percy's so getting kicked." I said and she barked out a laugh.

"He got you into this, didn't he?"

"You think?"

Thalia frowned and for a second I swear she almost looked sad. On pure instinct, I reached for her forearm.

"Are you okay?" I asked. Thalia cracked a sarcastic grin and shook her head.

"Yeah… Why wouldn't I be?" she asked me, almost as if she couldn't wait to her my answer so she could beat the crap right out of me. I shrugged and cocked my head at her.

"You just seemed… never mind. Percy, are we going already?" I called out, quickly trying to get away from Thalia before I told her how pretty she looked and made an idiot of myself. Percy and was helping Annabeth down the stairs. I felt my eyebrows hop up into my hairline. Annabeth looked nothing like herself. With the dress, hair put up in a bun and some make up…Wooh, you could barely recognize her. Don't tell her I said that.

She was carrying the crutches with her, and it proved to be extremely hard to get her into the car. She kept pushing and pulling and the rest of us kept losing our brain cells. When we finally got her into the car, Percy sat in the back seat with her and Thalia joined me in the front. She kept cursing the dress, the heels and the makeup and I started to laugh.

"Thalia?" I asked her in amusement. Her eyes slowly turned to me, and it looked really creepy. She grimaced at me.

"What?"

"What's with the cursing? You sound like an annoyed cab driver."

"UGH! This whole get-up is seriously killing me! I think I already have blisters and this dress is way too tight and—"

"I think you look beautiful." I said, just because I knew it would shut her up. Plus it sounded really good coming out of my mouth for once.

As I expected, Thalia went quiet and didn't say anything until we reached her apartment. All of us stepped up and looked up. You could see the lights from the top floor and Thalia groaned.

"This is going to be so bad." While she was complaining, Percy and Annabeth already walked away and left us standing there, looking like a big bag of stupid in formal clothing. I rolled my eyes and grabbed Thalia's hand, pulling her forward. Her hands was warm and fitted in mine nicely.

"You seriously need to learn how to shut up." I expected retaliation, but she just kept staring at our hands. It made me feel kind of awkward, so I just let her hand fall out of mine. Well, this is going so well. I seriously thought about pushing Percy of that building in that particular moment.

God, I hate dances.

**Annabeth POV**

Good god, Thalia was right. We barely stepped into the building and I already saw three couples making out in the background. It wasn't even on the floor the dance was at! I saw that Percy looked as if the whole thing was funny to him, so I tried to look at it that way, but it was so hard. While we were still in the elevator, some two seniors were all over each other, trashing around the dang room and pushing everyone around. Not to mention it was so awkward.

When we finally got to the suite, I couldn't help but to smile. It looked incredible. All the decorations have been moved from the gym to the apartment, so it now had dispensers that threw fake snow around, and big, white, puffy snowflakes hanging from the ceiling. The lights were flashing white and light blue. It honestly looked like a winter wonderland.

I saw that Percy was impressed as well. He was looking around the room, gawking at everything he saw. I bumped him with my elbow.

"It looks beautiful, doesn't it?"

"Not as much as you." He said lightly and winked at me. I could feel the stupid blush creep up my spine and neck and soon I was red as a tomato. Good think the lights didn't allow him to see it, that would have been embarrassing.

"Shut up."

"Do you want to dance?" he asked me after a few seconds.

"Um, can we wait for something a little slower? I can't really 'pump it up' with my broken leg." I said and Percy burst out laughing.

"Pump it up?"

"And back it up like a Tonka truck." Percy gave me a weird look, but he was still laughing. "What? Matt likes to listen to Jennifer Lopez sometimes. It's not my fault." I shrugged.

"You are so crazy."

"Riiiight. Hey, where are Thalia and Nico?" Percy stepped on his toes and looked around the room. He was already six foot tall, so when he lifted himself up like that, he was taller than eighty percent of the people in the room.

"I can't see them. Maybe they're on the dance floor." He proposed and I gave him a wary, are-you-kidding-me look.

"Percy, its Nico and Thalia we're talking about. The two people who are alive but act as if they are dead."

"I'm sure they'll show up. Come on, let's go find Piper and Jason." He jerked his head and then entwined our fingers, dragging me after him in the process. But I still felt uneasy. I had a feeling in my gut that told me Nico and Thalia weren't going to show up any time soon.

And boy; was I right as ever.

**Thalia POV**

Let's go with the elevator, he said. It will be easier for the both of us, he said.

This is the last time I listen to anything a guy said.

"Open up!" Nico banged his fists on the Plexiglas.

"T-th-ey can't hear y-you." I stuttered out. I had my eyes shut tight, just so I didn't have to look down.

"Well I can't just leave you like that. Thalia. Hey, stop shaking." He crouched down to my level, or at least I think he did. I shook my head quickly.

"Nope. High up. Ca-can't get down."

Now here's the problem with high buildings. They're high. So to get to the top, you have to take the elevator, whom I have no problem with, but the height kills me. I have had a fear of heights since I can remember my own name, and not once has it been this bad.

Nico thought it would be easier for us to take the elevator than to climb up tens of flights of stairs. I agreed, since there was no way I could walk all the way up there with the heels and the dress. I am also a very lazy person in general. But then, about three floors away from our destination, the elevator suddenly stopped. It just… shut down, leaving Nico and I hundreds of feet up in the air. I had my eyes closed the whole time, and when I felt the elevator stop, I thought we got there, until I heard Nico curse quite colorfully and slam his foot on the glass.

The elevator is see-through, by the way. Made entirely out of Plexiglas, it became the newest trend for every new building. You can see the street, the cars and the people. Or in my case, certain death.

"Thalia. Look at me. C'mon, open your eyes." He said in a voice so gentle that it made me open my eyes against my will. But they darted all around the elevator, and I started to panic again.

"No! No, look at me. Just at me. Okay? Listen to me; we're going to wait here. I'm going to sit next to you and we're going to wait for help. Just look at me. Don't look down." He said soothingly and sat next to me.

"Honestly, who's stupid enough to make an all see-through elevator?" Nico grumbled.

"My dad."

"Oh, crap! I… didn't mean it that way."

"Sure you did. But did you hear me say otherwise? He knows I'm terrified of heights, yet he still put up these crappy plastic elevators all around the city." I said, still trying to look only at Nico. I finally saw what he looked like. The black, medium-long, shaggy hair that fell into his big, black eyes. No matter how tall and scrawny he was, you could still make out muscles on his hands. The tux really didn't do him justice. And then I noticed he had jeans on as well. I guess it's much better; picturing Nico in a suit is a terrifying thought. I had no idea where my train of thoughts was going, but it all came down to one thing only. Nico was so hot it made me sick.

"Thalia!" he snapped his fingers in front of my face.

"Huh?"

"Way to pay attention." He mumbled.

"What did you say Dead boy?"

"I asked you if you were hungry." He said simply and I scrunched my eyebrows at him.

"What?" I asked him, confused. Nico shrugged and pulled out two packs of Oreos from his jacket, which caused me to burst out laughing.

"Oh my god." I said, honestly impressed.

"What? I like to be prepared for things like this. By the way…" he trailed of and brought out a medium-sized flask from behind his back.

"Is that alcohol?" I asked him, surprised he did these kinds of things. A little disappointed too, not that I'd admit it. I mean, he and I were hardcore compared to Annabeth and Percy, but this seemed way to un-Nico like.

"No, it's orange juice." He smirked at me and the look on my face.

So there we were: eating Oreos and exchanging the flask filled with orange juice like real alcoholics. Sometime while we talked, it became dark, and the city was filled with lights.

"So, basically, the lesion is: never try to wake someone up using a frog and a clothes pin." He said and we laughed like crazy. I have never laughed as much as I did with him in that moment. When we calmed down, I started to look at the stars. They shined brightly and flickered every now and then.

"Tell me something about yourself." I blurted out. Damn you, ADHD. Nico seemed surprised for a second, but then went on to think about it.

"I hate coconuts."

I blinked at him, I didn't see that coming. "That's all you got? You don't like coconuts?"

"Yeah, I mean, they're weird and all. They have hair on the outside, and flesh and milk on the inside. They're like… mutants." He finished and then turned to me.

"Your turn."

"Me? Okay, I… well I guess I don't like coconuts as well. Everyone's always going on and on about how great they are and how good they taste, but I really don't like them. And what's up with the three holes on the front?"

"Right?" he widened his eyes at me dramatically.

"But I guess I'm not being fair, I kinda stole your thing. So… I have big feet." I said the first thing that popped into my head and was completely true.

"What?" Nico started to laugh so hard he had tears coming out of his eyes.

"Well it's true! Just look at these things!" I pointed at my feet that were sprawled out on the floor.

"They don't seem so big."

"Because you're a guy! Guys have bigger feet by nature, and these puppies are not natural!" I yelled at him, suddenly caught in the moment.

When I turned to look at him, he already had his eyes on me. They reflected the lights from the city, so they looked like they were sparkling. Sitting with him like that, I didn't even mind how sappy I was getting or how high I was up.

"Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to go to this thing after all." I murmured as Nico came closer. And just when his lips touched mine, we heard a phone ring. We snapped out of our… position, and looked around the elevator. Nico stood up and pointed at a box in the far corner.

"An emergency phone. Why the hell didn't we use this thing?!" he yelled, opened the box and snatched the phone from its ledge.

I faintly heard Percy's phone coming from the other side of the line and Nico kept murmuring something in the earphone. Since I was back at being scared and couldn't stand up to save my life, I couldn't hear anything he said.

A few moments later, Nico hung up and turned to look at me.

"They just realized the power has been shut. They're gonna turn it on in about… uh, now." He finished when we jerked upwards. Soon, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. I shot up from the floor and ran in the hall.

Annabeth, Percy and our entire generation was there, all cheering and yelling when we stepped out of that metal death can.

Soon, we got lost in the flood of teenagers. Annabeth almost started to cry when she saw me, and I was happy to see her as well, but mostly I had just one thing circling around my head.

Where was the Oreo-carrying idiot?

**Annabeth POV**

My heart almost exploded. Thalia was nowhere to be found even two hours after we arrived. I started to nag on Percy to tell someone, but he always said the same damn thing.

"As long as she's with Nico, she'll be okay." He repeated over and over again.

See, there's the problem with people. They mean well, but in the end, it's so much more efficient to do things on your own.

So I found the building manager and told him my best friend and her… uh, date, were missing. They take things like that pretty serious around here. They looked through the security cameras and saw Thalia and Nico walking into one of the elevators. Soon, they realized the power was off in that section and quickly told Percy to call the emergency phone. A few minutes later, Thalia and Nico stepped out of that elevator in one piece, and I couldn't be happier.

Now I really felt like this dance wasn't a complete waste. Thalia and I walked around a little bit, talked to Piper and some of the girls we became friends with. Then we attacked the buffet table and Thalia sneaked us some junk food from her fridge as well. It was her apartment after all.

Then, the lights toned down and Travis came to the podium. He was accompanied by some whistles and that made him grin widely.

"Thank you ladies. Now, I think it's time for our first slow dance, because I think I saw some girls in the background trying to put out the fire on their shoes." He said and the place filled with laughter and chuckles.

"And please, keep your hands above the waist line! Okay, now, here's some light, kind of eardrum popping, pop music, because some of the girls in here are damn scary!" he yelled happily and then shuddered a bit. I waited for Justin Bieber or One Direction to fill the hall, instead, Green Day started playing.

Thalia walked up to me with a smile on her face as 'Boulevard of broken dreams' started to play.

"When did you have the time to mess with the songs?"

"Who says I did anything?" she asked me with an innocent look on her face.

"But… if you didn't then who—Nico." I laughed at my stupidity. Of course he would do the same thing as Thalia. Speaking of the wolf, he walked up to us with the usual sardonic look on his face.

"You wanna dance? We can mock them and step on their feet." He offered his hand to Thalia and I fought myself to keep the grin in. Thalia looked at me and when I nodded frantically, grabbed his hand.

"Can I step with my heel?" I faintly heard her ask him.

"Even better."

"Now that those two are off, do you finally want to dance with me?" Percy suddenly showed up. I grinned at him.

"Slow dancing? At Green Day?"

"We'll pretend it's Mozart." He grinned at me and stretched out his hand. I placed mine in his and he helped me get up.

Then Percy let me step on his feet, and we moved like that. Like a child that can't walk and its parent. We moved slowly to the music, trying not to bump into anyone.

"You really do look beautiful tonight."

"Did I look ugly yesterday?" I teased him. Percy's eyes widened.

"What? No! I- I didn't—"

"Percy, I'm kidding. And thank you."

"You know, if somebody told me six months ago we would be here tonight, I would have told them they have lost it."

"Huh. Then… why are we here Percy?" I asked him and he suddenly turned serious. His eyes even looked a little sad.

"I… don't know. But what I do know is that when I'm with you, I feel better than I have ever felt before. Even before we were… us. You just had a way of bringing the best and the worst out of me, but it was always a feeling better than anything else. That's why I… can't imagine being without you." He said, honesty practically dripping from his mouth.

I didn't know what to say to that, so I did the next best thing- kissed him. It was an emotion filled kiss that always made me go weak in the knees. The way his lips moved against mine… the way he smelled… it was all enough to make me go crazy. I felt a wildfire spread through my body, lighting up every single one of my cells. It was a burn, but a very pleasant one.

So we danced and danced. Nico and Thalia were inseparable mocking, pranking and really stepping on their feet ; Percy and I just like them, except without the pranking and mocking. Countless songs went by, before any of us stopped. My feet hurt, my back was aching, the dress was itching me, my hair was ruffled and out of its place, I was sleepy, hungry and exhausted at the same time…

But it was one of the best and funniest nights of my life.

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**What do you think? I like this chapter, I had fun writing it. Especially because I had a really bad day and I felt sad and depressed. I even got in a fight with Leo... We're both really stubborn so I don't know for how long we'll be mad at each other... *sigh* Now there's absolutely no way I'll go to that dance at my school. I thought that... maybe... Leo and I would go together, but that's out of the picture now. Bummer...**

**I'm gonna go now and watch... 21 jump street because Channing and Jonah always make me feel better.**


	22. Nico gives up

**Read and Review**

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The next day I woke up in one of Thalia's many guest rooms. It took me a few minutes to find my way to the kitchen, and when I got there, Thalia was already sitting by the counter, drinking coffee and scrolling through her phone. Percy was fumbling with something behind the counter; he didn't even see me coming.

It was around two in the morning when Thalia and Jason finally decided to send everyone home. Percy, Thalia, Nico and I stayed back, because Thalia and Jase didn't want us driving home so late. Jason shoved everyone out and then took Piper home, but he didn't come back. He texted Thalia saying he went to their house since it was much nearer for him.

I sat next to Thalia and tried to see what Percy was doing. He had his back turned to me.

"Good morning."

"Oh, hey babe." He mumbled and I felt my eyebrows jump up. Thalia smirked at me and made a not-bad face at Percy.

"Did you just call me babe?" I asked him amused. Percy turned to me and grinned.

"Am I not allowed?"

"Well… I'm kind of a feminist so I'm not supposed to like it." I joked but played serious. Percy frowned at me when I heard Nico.

"Feminist my ass." He said and fell into one of the chairs.

"Nice hair dude." Percy mocked him and Thalia and I snickered. His black hair was dishelmed and scruffy, with little piece flying all over the place. He ran his hand through it and shook his head, and I'm pretty sure I saw Thalia stiffen. It made me crack a giant grin at which she just rolled her eyes.

"Ugh, whatever. Why are you up so early anyway?" he asked us.

"It's past eleven." I said matter-of-factly. Nico just gave me a flat look.

"So?" he said and Thalia laughed.

"You two are hopeless." I shook my head at them.

"Here you go." Percy said and placed a plate full of blue pancakes in front of us. We all stared first at the plate, then at Percy, then back at the plate.

"You made this?" Thalia asked him. She and Nico were already grabbing pancakes and putting them on their separate plates.

"I didn't know you could cook." Nico said, obviously confused out of his mind. He and Thalia started to stuff pancakes in their mouth before they started to cough and make gagging noises. So not appropriate for breakfast.

"What, did I put too much food color?" Percy asked and grabbed a pancake. The second he bit into it, his eyes widened and he started to spit pieces of the poor pancake out of his mouth. Thalia and Nico were already ahead of him, and were wiping their mouths with cleaning wipes.

"Okay, really, what's wrong with you?" I said and then did the stupidest thing I could. I grabbed half of Percy's pancake and chewed on it. The second the taste hit my tongue I felt my throat constrict. Thalia, Nico and Percy were yelling and looking with me with wide eyes.

"She's not as smart as she seems." Nico said simply. Percy and Thalia both gave him a look, since I was still trying to get the awful taste out of my mouth.

"Why did you try it?" Percy yelled.

"Well I… Peer pressure." I said lamely and slumped into my chair. Thalia smiled at me and then threw an angry look at Percy.

"Are you trying to poison us, Jackson?" she accused him. Percy just gave her a wary look and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, that's why I ate one myself. Damn it, I must have put salt instead of sugar."

"Dumb ass." Nico said and wiped his mouth again. I got up and jumped over to the fridge and opened it, examining its contents.

"Well so much for Percy's cooking. Who wants eggs?"

* * *

Later that day, I had to go and get my leg checked up on. Sally called Percy and told him there was some kind of emergency at home so he couldn't drive me. Thalia said she wasn't feeling well, but we all knew it was just an excuse not to go to the hospital with me. So I was left Nico, not that I had a problem with him, he was a good company when he wanted to be.

Luckily for me, it was one of those days. He seemed to be in a brighter mood than usual, and when I asked him what's going on, he even turned red for as second, which made me realize my raven headed girl best friend had something to do with it. I was dying to know what happened while they were in that elevator yesterday, but both of them had their mouth shut.

Nico and I walked into the hospital and he helped me up the stairs, since the sole thought of using the elevator made us both sick. It took us some time, but we eventually did it.

While we were going down the hall, one of the nurses was rushing somewhere, probably some kind of an emergency, and she dropped all of her papers and files she was holding.

"Oh god! Nico, honey, could you please pick that up and take to your mom? I have to hurry, a bus was in an accident!" she yelled as she ran down the stairs along with a few other nurses and doctors. Nico and I looked at each other. He sighed and crouched down to pick up the papers.

While he was trying to arrange them, a certain name caught my eye. I grabbed Nico by his shoulder.

"Give me that!" I snatched it from him but he pulled back.

"You can't go through that Annabeth, it's kind of illegal!"

"No one will know!" I exclaimed and looked around. I spotted a door with the sign 'Storage' written on it, and I pulled Nico in that direction. Once I got him in the small space, I took the file and started to look through it.

"Annabeth?" Nico asked me suspiciously.

"It's Percy's file. And look, you're holding Thalia's too! I bet mine's in there too. We were all in the hospital at the same time." I said and went through the files frantically.

"What on earth are you doing?" Nico asked me.

"Did you ever think Percy and Thalia are alike?" I asked him seriously and Nico's mouth opened.

"No. Because they're not. Everything about them screams 'different.'" He shrugged.

"You're wrong. The way they walk and act… They don't look like each other, but something's there… Their eyes have the same shape, so do their mouths…"

"Are you trying to tell me they're brother and sister?" Nico barked out a laugh.

"Not really… But I bet you anything they have the same blood group and their fathers…" I said and my voice faltered, "have the same last name…" Nico quickly took the papers from my hands. His eyes widened and his mouth former an 'o'.

"Holy crap."

* * *

We sat on the floor, our backs pressed against the wall, neither of us saying anything. We were still under the impression of what we just found out.

"So what now? Do we tell them?" I asked Nico, breaking the long silence. He just shrugged.

"How? We walk up to them and say: ' Do you know you two are cousins? Bet you didn't'"

"Do you think they know already?"

"No way. Besides, don't you remember what Percy did to you and Thalia?"

"Oh, right. Nico…" I trailed off, and his face darkened, like he knew what I was about to ask him. "Why did he change his mind? About me?"

"Please don't ask me that… I don't know." He said and I knew he was lying.

"Something changed his mind. Or someone." I said, completely sure now.

"Annabeth…"

"Is he lying to me? Playing me?" I yelled at him and Nico's face morphed into a painful expression.

"No, look… No matter what he said or did, Percy… he loves you Annabeth. I have never seen him this way and no matter how cheesy it is, he loves you." He sighed. I wanted to trust him, I really did, but something in his voice told me he wasn't telling me the entire truth. It was understandable, by the way, since he was probably protecting Percy, but it didn't mean he had to lie to me.

**Nico POV**

I have got to stop slipping up like this. She almost caught me now. When I finally ushered her out of the cramped space, I fished my phone out of my back pocket and quickly texted Percy.

_'She's getting suspicious.' _It didn't take him long to answer, he was probably typing to save his life.

**'Did u tell her anything?'**

_'Don't be stupid. But be careful around her.'_ I locked my phone just as Annabeth approached me with a smile on her face.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah, your mom wants to see you. Oh, you don't need to carry your phone with you, I'll just take it." She shrugged nonchalantly. I was a naturally suspicious person, so I immediately started to look for signs of her being up to something, but she looked as if she was thinking about God know what. I gave her my phone against my will and slowly went to see my mom. I was half way there when I realized she had that emergency and most likely didn't even know I was here. Kicking myself mentally, I sprinted back to where I last saw Annabeth. Of course, when I got there, a nurse gave me my phone. I turned the screen on, unlocked it and saw it showed the messages I exchanged with Percy.

I knew she would do this. It probably took her half a second the figure out my pin- Bianca's birthday. I cursed myself for even telling her when it was.

"Damn it!"

* * *

The city was once again a mess. It took me half an hour before I got to Percy's house. When I entered, Percy was sprawled out on the couch, watching ABC family. His eyebrows jumped when he saw me.

"Nico?"

"Is… everything okay?" I asked him and Percy gave me a funny look.

"Why wouldn't it be? Dude, did you watch that movie Mama again? You know it creeps you out." He mocked me. I shook my head at him and sat down; I was starting to calm down.

"That's you Percy. It creeps you out."

"Does not."

"Does too."

"Whatever. What are you doing here?" he asked me.

"I… made a mistake." I said and told Percy everything about Annabeth's and mine trip to the hospital. By the time I was done, he looked green, pale and just sick in general.

"Did she read everything?" he asked me. I remembered that I once or twice told Percy to call of the bet, also by texts. Luckily for the both of us, those were long gone from my phone.

"No, I deleted those."

"At least something good. Okay, I can fix this." He announced. I thought about it before I opened my mouth.

"And how about you just leave it alone? Tell her the truth Perce."

"What? Are you crazy? Do you know what she will do to me? Not only will I end up in the hospital again, but it will become physically impossible for me to live. I can't tell her, at least not yet." He shook his head.

"It's your funeral. But I would tell her."

Eventually, Percy managed to save his ass by telling Annabeth another lie. Thalia and I watched him do it by the sidelines, both of us feeling like the worst people in the world. I caught her with a look so sad on her face, it made me feel even worse.

This will make me sound like a horrible friend, but I wished Annabeth found out already. None of us knew how she would react. Maybe she would forgive him, or maybe she would kill him, there was no way to know. All I know is that it was killing all of us.

Rachel became a problem as well. Thalia and I did our best to keep her away from Annabeth, just so she wouldn't tell her and hurt her. In the mean time, Percy tried to call off the bet, but Luke didn't even want to hear about it. It resulted in Percy punching him in the face and getting four days worth of suspension.

But things got even worse near the end of the week. Percy and I were at his house playing FIFA, when someone knocked on his door. Percy went to answer it and I immediately wished he didn't.

Luke and Ethan stood on his doorway, and were in the middle of a sentence when Percy opened the door.

"Oh hell no." I groaned.

"Don't get your emo pants in a twist di Angelo, I only have one thing to say to Percy." Luke said, for once without his fake politeness.

"What?" Percy said in a blunt tone.

"I heard about your stunt and how Annabeth almost found out. You can't believe how much I hated myself for making that stupid agreement I wouldn't tell her. Rachel tried to, but your two sidekicks kept pushing her away. Nice job, by the way." He mocked me.

"I try." I said, while shooting daggers at that jackass of Nakamura that stood behind him and was grinning like that cat from Alice in Wonderland.

"But you're really pushing my buttons Jackson. So here's what's going to happen. Whoever loses this bet, leaves the school." He said, obviously on the verge of common sense. I shot up from my seat.

"That's the dumbest thing I have ever heard of!"

"Deal." Percy said and my head whipped in his way.

"Are you kidding me?!" I yelled at him.

"I brought Ethan as a witness, but I see I shouldn't have- you already have your monkey boy with you." He smirked.

"In about five seconds you'll be picking your teeth from the floor."

"Cute. Well I'd love to stay and chat, but I have a life to get back to. See you, boys." Luke said in an overly sweet tone that made my lunch go back up. When the doors closed, I turned to Percy.

"Are you stupid?!" I yelled at him. "No, correction, I know you're stupid, but why are you making it worse?!"

"It's going to be okay. I'm gonna win anyway." He said and grabbed the controller. My eyes just about fell out of my head. I felt something in me snap at his coldness. I grabbed my jacket and started to put it on.

"What are you doing?"

"You know, before I was against this because of what happened to Bianca, but now it's also because I don't want Annabeth to get hurt. I get that it was easier for you before, you didn't care for Annabeth, but now you do and you're still not thinking about what's going to happen to her. You're ruining your life Percy and it's going to come back and punch you in the face. I don't want to do this anymore. So I'm out. Good luck with the hell you'll find yourself in." I said and slammed the door shut behind me, not looking back.

I was so done with him.

* * *

**One fall out, two more to go. Uhhhh, things are getting heavy. Will Annabeth find out soon? And who will tell her? What will happen with Nico and Thalia? Questions, questions...**

**The chapters are getting kind of depressing, and that's because I've been also kind of depressed. My best friend isn't talking to me and I got a D in my economics test. God, I hate being a teenager. **

**Not to mention that Leo is an ass who still won't answer any of my calls. He called me twice last night but I was in the shower and didn't hear my phone ring. Later when I tried calling him he didn't pick up. He probably thinks I ignored his calls on purpose. And because I have nobody to tackle or study with, I'm seriously considering going to his house later. Why do I try so much about him? It's like rocket science to me.**

**Ah, but I won't let this crappy teenage life get to me. I'm gonna go and wash my... goldfish.**

**I love you all, bye :)**


	23. Boxes titled 'ex'

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Thalia POV**

I think I had a small stroke when Annabeth told me Percy and I were cousins, I swear to God. I denied it and fought with her for an hour, but when she told me everything about my dad and his dad… It kind of stuck the landing. I knew my father had a brother, but this came as a slap in the face.

But it did feel nice to know I had more family around me than just Jason. Sure, both of them were major pains in the ass, but still.

Jason and I were lounging around the house, throwing things at each other, fighting and watching TV when someone rang the door bell. Hannah, our maid, opened the door and soon Nico came into the living room. He and Jason fist bumped, stupid guy thing, and he looked at me. He was deadly serious, all the humor from his handsome face gone. He jerked his head at me, like he had something important to tell me.

"Jason, get out." I yelled. Jason gave me a bored look.

"You're not dad Thalia; I don't have to listen to you."

"Oh come on! You'd listen to Piper if she was here, yelling at you!" at that he blushed and rolled his eyes, but he got up and walked away.

"So what's up?"

"Percy's gone crazy."

"Tell me something I don't know." I mumbled. Nico shook his head so fiercely his hair flew around.

"This is serious Thalia! He and Luke made a deal that the one who loses the bet leaves the school." He said and my eyes grew wide.

"What?! How can he be so stupid?!" I yelled and Nico's face turned even more serious.

"Are you seriously worrying about Percy right now? Thalia, what about Annabeth, remember, your best friend?" he inquired. I shook my head.

"I won't let him hurt her."

"You're already worried more about him than you are about her!" he yelled and threw his hands up in the air. I placed my hands on my hips, jealousy sparking in me.

"And why do you care so much Nico? Maybe the bet backfired at you, and now the best friend is in love with the girl. Typical." I snorted. I wanted to kill him, but at the same time I saddened myself with my own words. I never admitted it to myself, but I couldn't stand the idea of Nico being into someone else.

His eyes visibly widened, "What are you talking about?" he asked me. A deep frown started to cover his features until his face looked down and he just looked disappointed.

"I…"

"You know damn straight how I feel about… certain people in this room, so what the hell are you talking about Thalia? I care because Annabeth is my friend, a real one and I don't have a lot of those. She's funny, smart, kind, brave and… just like Bianca." He said in a voice so sad I felt like crying myself.

"But obviously none of you care about that. It doesn't matter that some people are left so heartbroken that they…" he took a deep sigh, " You're not who I thought you were Thalia." He said finally, making me look at him with wide eyes. "You and Percy are living proof that genes are transferrable." He said and walked out of the room, leaving me to stare at the place he was standing at seconds ago.

"He's right, you know." Jason said behind me. I turned around quickly and caught him looking at me, with a sad look on his face as well. "In my opinion, all of you got so wrapped up in trying to keep her from finding out… about the bet that you forgot to think about what's going to happen when she finds out." he smiled at me sympathetically.

"I don't know what to do Jase." I admitted and sat on the couch. Things were going so wrong, and winter break hasn't even started. Jason sat next to me and threw a comforting arm over my shoulders. I leaned my head on him and felt closer to my brother than I ever did.

What was I going to do?

**Annabeth POV**

Thalia and Nico started to dangerously avoid me. It started when they weren't at our usual table in the cafeteria, and continued all through winter break. Thalia rarely talked to me and I felt lonelier than ever. Nico didn't respond to my texts and refused to answer my phone calls. The only person that I still saw was Percy.

He was always there, almost every day. We went on dates, watched movies, played in the snow and spent endless hours together. My winter break was slow and painful sometimes and then fast and fun the other times.

But Percy couldn't make that awful feeling go away. The one I always got when Thalia didn't answer me or when Percy told me everything's okay. I knew it wasn't. I even started to miss Nico and his sardonic, sarcastic self. One good thing came out of my winter break though.

I finally admitted it to myself I had fallen in love with Percy.

It came to me in quite an unusual way. One day, he brought a guitar with him when he came to my house. When I asked him where he got it, he said he found it. Then Bobby and Matt came into the room and started to jump all over him, something they always did when Percy came. They even became friends, since Percy was on the same level of adulthood as they were.

While they were rolling around the floor, Bobby and Matt killing Percy, I realized I had fallen for him. Harder than I ever wanted to. It wasn't fair that his smile and just thinking about him could do me so damage. The warm tingly feeling turned into a scorching stomach turning whenever I was around him, and honestly? It's the best feeling in the world.

And then, we spend the New Year together. We went to the Times Square and then went back to my house where my dad and Susan grew even fonder of him.

So, my life was divided. On one side, two out of three my best friends didn't talk to me, and on the other side, I was finally happy in a relationship with a guy I was head over heels with.

One day, Percy came to my house. It was the last week of our winter break and I was pretty stressed out about school and everything, so Percy wanted to do something that would 'calm me down.'

We watched Toy Story with the boys and then they role played. I died from laughter at Percy's portrayal of Woody. I was rolling around the floor with tears streaming from my eyes. Suddenly, his phone rang. He looked at the screen and his face turned serious, losing every crinkle that formed on his face from laughing. It got me worried that something bad has happened, but Percy reassured me and went into the kitchen to answer the phone call.

Matt and I were bawling like idiots by the end of the third part. Then Percy came in and he seemed like he was back to his old self.

"Who was that?" I asked him, not expecting an answer.

"My mom. She just wants me to pick up some eggs when I go home." He said and I nodded. There really wasn't much need to look into things that much, I had no desire to become one of those stalker girlfriends that controlled every little detail in their boyfriend's lives.

Percy stayed for a few more hours before he decided it was best he went home. He gave me a kiss and now I wish I had kissed him just a little longer, since it was one of our last kisses we would share before we fell apart.

I entered the room again with a giant smile plastered all over my face, looking like a dumb struck idiot. Bobby was assembling and disassembling his toy car over and over again when he looked at me with his smart blue eyes.

"Annabeth?"

"Yeah Bobes?"

"Who's Luke?" he asked me and I felt the smile fall from my face. I looked at my brother; he was staring at me innocently.

"How do you know about Luke?"

"Percy was talking to him in the kitchen." He said.

"No… you must have heard wrong buddy. His mom called him." I told him, but it sounded more like I was trying to convince myself. He lied to me, again. And this time, it was because of Luke.

"No… he kept saying Luke."

"What else did he say?" I asked before I could stop myself. Did I want to know? I have no idea.

"Uh… he said he needs more time."

"And?"

"That… I don't know Annie, I can't remember!" he started to wail. I felt close to tears myself.

"Booby, look at me. Yes you can, please… just try to remember."

"Okay, I'll try." He sniffled, "he said that there's no need to keep up with the bet."

"What bet?"

"He said that he won. That you love him."

"No…" I said, a strange feeling spreading though my body. I soon realized what it was. Anger. Disappointment. Numbness. Heartbreak. It didn't take me long to connect the dots. He lied to me. He's with me only because of a bet he made with Luke. He doesn't love me, he lied to me. And then, just when I thought I was done, I figured out everything else.

Nico and Thalia knew as well, I was sure. All of those times they said something but closed their mouth… gave me sad looks… fights they had… It was all about this. They all lied to me. Used me.

"Annie? Why are you crying?" Matt asked me.

"I'm not crying." I said, but when I opened my mouth, I felt the saltiness of my own tears. Tears that were running down my cheeks, chin and dripping on my shirt. I started to cry uncontrollably, so bitterly that once I started I couldn't stop. Matt and Bobby came up to me and threw their small arms around me, which only made me cry more. I was sitting on the floor, rocking back and forth, crying my eyes out while my two little brothers tried their best not to burst into tears with me.

I finally knew what that feeling in my stomach told me all this time- don't trust him.

* * *

When I woke up, my head hurt like hell. I was in my room, lying in my bed. Susan and my dad were seated on my couch and when they saw I had woken up ran to my side.

"Annabeth! Annabeth, what happened?"

"I… don't remember. What did happen?" I asked them, trying to remember what happened after the tears blurred my vision. Then it all came down on me. Percy. Nico. Thalia. The bet.

"We came home and found you leaned on the couch. You passed out." Huh, I must have cried so hard that I exhausted myself. I remember slowly drifting off to sleep.

"Yeah… I was sick and I guess it hit me in the head." I lied. Susan smiled sadly at me and my dad avoided my eyes.

"Do you want some tea? Maybe something to eat?" she asked me, but I had no appetite. I felt like I just wanted to sleep and forget about everything for a while.

"No thank you. I'm just… tired."

"We'll leave you to rest then." She said and both of them slowly walked out of the room, closing the door shut behind them.

The second the door clicked, I buried myself into the warm blankets. I just felt sad now. I didn't feel depressed or about to start screaming in desperation, but the intensity of the pain I felt was enormous. Thalia probably hurt me the most. My best friend, one I told everything and have known since we wore diapers, didn't mind tearing my heart in half.

After a few hours of lying in my bed, thinking everything through, I sighed and got up. I grabbed a box from a small room my family used as storage and started to look through my things.

I took my Pitch Perfect CD and put it in the box. I found Percy's hoodie in my closet and placed it in as well. I took some drawings he drew from me and put it in along with the rest of things. I grabbed everything that had something to do with Percy and reminded me of him and put it in the box. I put some tape over it and wrote 'Liar' on the box in bold letters. Then it occurred to me I was coming off way too dramatic and scribbled over it. I wrote 'Percy' instead.

I grabbed another box and wrote 'Thalia' on it. I took a bigger box, because there were more things I was going to put in it. Fifteen minutes later, every little thing that had something to do with her was in the box. I put tape over it as well and put both boxes on the floor in the corner of my room.

"Dad?" I called out. A minute later he appeared on my doorstep with a book in his hands.

"Yes Annabeth?"

"Can you take these boxes to the car please? I'm gonna drop them off at Thalia's and Percy's." he looked me at with eyebrows raised but nodded anyway. When he came back he placed his hand on my shoulder and gave me the fatherliest look I have ever gotten from him.

"I'm sorry you're hurting honey. If you need anything, just tell me." He said gently. I looked up at him with wide eyes.

"How did you know?"

"A father knows these things Annabeth. I knew it the second you opened your eyes. Listen, I know I haven't been there for you when you needed me, but what do you say we change that?" he stared down at me. I nodded slowly, trying to fight off the tears. I hated crying and making myself look weak. I'm not weak.

"I'd love that. Thank you dad."

"No problem. If you need anything, call us." He kissed my head and left the room.

Well what do you know? The day I found out my boyfr—ex boyfriend was a liar and my ex best friend didn't care about me; I finally made peace with my dad. Life sure loved screwing with me.

* * *

**O.O she knows! Well, I got you, didn't I? I bet you thought Nico or Thalia or maybe even Percy would tell her, but did you see how I planned it out? **

**In the next chapter, there's a confrontation and a reconciliation. You try to guess what will happen, I challenge you.**

**Short story time. **

**I didn't go to the dance. As I said before, I didn't have a date and Leo and I still aren't talking and it's killing me, so I didn't really have any motivation to go in the first place. Okay, correction. We weren't talking yesterday, we are talking now. We made up! He's sitting right beside me as I'm writing this and is laughing at... I don't even know what. But I appreciate that all of you yelled at me and told me to make up with him. I did.**

**So life's good again. I also got another chance to retake my test, so I'm studying my ass off for that. Fingers crossed :D**

**I'm really sorry if some of you stop reading because Percabeth is, technically broken up, but if you stop now, you'll never know how and if they get back together... ;)**

**Bye my chocolate covered carrots!**


	24. The kid's an idiot

**Read and Review**

* * *

I didn't go to school for the first two days, just to make some order in my head. Percy kept calling me, but I always just pressed red. I didn't reply his texts or answered his calls or listened to his voice mail. I just sent everything straight to trash.

I don't think I was even sad anymore. Sure, I still had to convince myself for ten minutes in the morning to get up, because sleeping and dying sure looked a lot better. I tried to move on with my life, which is insane, because I only found out three days ago. But I made up my mind to forget but not forgive, because I was so done with people treating me like something they scraped off from their shoe.

The first day at school, I tried to keep a low profile. But that didn't stop Connor and Travis from bugging me. They jumped out in front of me with huge grins on their faces. It was nice to see someone else's smile for a change.

"Hey guys." I smiled at them.

"Yo, yo Annabeth. How was your vacation?" Travis asked me and slung his arm over my shoulder.

"Not bad. Could be better though. You guys?"

"Oh, it's was crazy."

"We shot fireworks."

"And did pranks so awesome we couldn't believe it ourselves." They cracked grins at me.

"I'm glad. Did you see your dad?"

"Yeah." Connor said.

"He's gotten old." Travis filled in.

"You guys are crazy." I shook my head at them. They walked me to my chemistry class, and when I walked in, I saw Percy sitting at our table. When he saw me he actually looked like he was happy, but then I remembered it was all fake and lies.

I was going to make him pay, but it wasn't the time to make a scene.

"Hey." I greeted him with a small smile on my face that I managed to scrape up.

"Hey. Where have you been? I've been calling you." He told me and got up. He went to kiss me, but I moved my head and he got my cheek. He seemed confused for a second, but then let it go.

"Sorry. I have been busy. I'm finally getting somewhere with my dad."

"That's awesome!" he exclaimed happily.

"Yeah. Awesome." I said quietly and started to doodle on my notebook. I had no interest in talking to him, because I might go crazy, kill him and then bring him back to life just to tell him how much I love him and how much he hurt me.

When the class finished, I shot out of my seat and almost ran out of the class. Piper didn't help me much either, she wanted to know what I did during the holydays. In the end I promised her I would tell later, and that after school she can come over to my house.

I heard footsteps behind me and soon Percy had his hands around me. I wriggled out of his grasp and now Percy had a look on his face that clearly said he knew something was up.

"Okay, Annabeth seriously, what's wrong? You've been so distant lately." He said and I smiled mockingly at him.

"Really, you sure? Or do you want to bet on it?" I spat out and he turned pale. He looked like he was going to be sick.

"How long have you known?" he asked me in a quiet voice.

"Since the last time you were in my house… What was the bet Percy? You got me, what do you win?" I asked him. I've been dying to know what was so valuable he would do this kind of thing to someone.

"I… I get Luke's car. And I get to humiliate him. And he leaves school." He spluttered out. I nodded, not really being able to believe my own ears.

"So… first you tortured me for years, then you befriended me, made me share everything with you, even my deepest secrets and fears, then you made me fall for you… And what hurts the most, my best friends were with you on it. Just so you can have a tin can on four wheels. Wow." I nodded my head. Now I could feel even my heart pieces fall into pieces. With every word I spoke, I was going under, deeper and deeper.

"It's not like that…" he tried to say something but I cut him off.

"It's not? So things aren't like that? Then what are they like Percy? What part of my story is wrong?"

"None of it." He spoke after a long silence. His eyes bore into mine, but I don't think he saw what he wanted to see. There was no more love in me to show him. All that was left was sadness, confusion… hate.

"You said, while we were at the winter formal, that I brought out both best and worst out of you. Well you always brought out only bad things from me. And this? This is my worst." I pointed at myself.

"Annabeth, please, just let me explain." He said. The hallway was empty by now, everyone was off to class.

"There's nothing that I want you to explain! Don't you understand? I don't want to listen to you, I don't want to see you and I don't ever want to think about you ever again!" I yelled angrily at him. I think that everything I have been keeping in has exploded at that moment. "You lied to me! And I crossed over it every time, but not anymore Percy. This was the worst thing you could do to me. So I just want you to disappear. I want to forget about you. And guess what? I already started." I spat out at him. When he looked at me again I faintly saw tears in the corner of his eyes.

"But… I love you." He said. To my utter surprise and Percy's utter horror, I laughed.

"Really? That's nice. Because I loved you too and this is what you did to me. So you and your love can burn in the deepest part of Tartarus for all I care." I said and walked out of that hallway and into the girl's bathroom. After I made sure nobody was inside, I sat on a small chair and started to cry my eyes out. I didn't want to feel like this.

I heard somebody come into the room and soon they were rubbing my back, making noises just to calm me down. I recognized the voice as Jason's, and buried my head in his neck.

"Annabeth? What happened?"

"He… bet." I managed to get out. I started to hiccup and my body was shaking uncontrollably.

"You found out, didn't you?" he said the worst thing possible he could say in that moment.

"YOU KNOW ABOUT IT TOO? Who else knows?" I yelled at him and pushed him away. Great, just another person whom I've trusted that lied to me.

"Uhhh, Thals told me Rachel knows too. And that jerk face of Ethan." I felt my head spin.

"That… Rachel knows?!" I yelled again. I must have been really loud, since I heard the door open again and when I turned around, I saw Nico. My first instinct told me to go up to him and punch him, but my other one, the one that told me I needed a friend, made me get up and hug him. I found out that Nico was a great comforter when he wanted to be.

Soon enough, I stopped crying. Nico was rubbing circles on my back and when he looked at me; his face was surprisingly sympathetic and gentle.

"I'm sorry." He said. I didn't realize it until then that I've been waiting for someone to say those words. I also realized Percy never said them. He said everything else, that he loved me, didn't mean to, wanted to call it off, but never that he was sorry.

"Why did he do it?"

"Because back then, he didn't care about anything. He only cared about himself. He was a jackass." Nico said after a few seconds of thinking about it. "But he cares now about so many different things. About his family and Thalia, about me… about you."

"Then why didn't he call off the bet?" I asked him, still hiccupping a bit.

"Because honestly, that crap-face of Luke didn't let him. Both Percy and I asked him to call it off, but he said he would tell you. We just didn't want you to be hurt. To be like… this." Nico finished lamely.

"Ugh! I don't want this! I wish he never sat next to me!" I yelled. "I don't want to feel like this. They say it's a heartbreak, but when I see him, I hurt in my whole body." I said and took a deep sigh.

"I hate to say it as much as you do, but I know how you feel." Nico admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"I kind of… Cut every cord I had with Thalia and Percy." He said. I felt my eyes widen. I didn't want to care but I still did, no matter what my head said.

"Why did you that?"

"It's complicated Annabeth." He sighed and slumped on the wall against me.

"So is everything else, but that never stopped you before."

"Well… you know what happened to Bianca, right? She was so devastated over a guy playing with her that she… did what she did. I never got over that and I just didn't want it to happen again."

"Nico, what happened to Bianca was an accident! She never meant to be run off the road! And besides, I would never, ever, take my life away. Or anyone else's for that matter." I told him honestly. The whole idea was crazy to me.

"Yeah, I get that now." He nodded slightly.

"So what will you do with Thalia?"

"Have you talked to her?" he asked me.

"No. And I don't think I will for some time. I just need to…"

"Heal."

"Yeah. I need to forget about everything and get my act together. I haven't cried this much in my entire life and you know what? I hate it. I hate crying."

Nico snorted, "Tell me about it. When Bianca died I was a water fountain."

"A tough guy like you... So her death… it broke your heart, didn't it?" I asked him and after a few seconds of contemplating what to say. Nico simply nodded.

"Has the pain disappeared?" I asked him.

"No… But you know what? It faded away."

* * *

After my little talk with Nico, I felt a lot better and a ton calmer. I felt like I could finally breathe for the first time since I found out about the bet. Talking to him also made me realize something - Nico had so many things he still wanted to say to his sister and it was eating him alive. I never wanted to feel that way, so right after lunch ended, I started to look for Thalia. She was my best friend after all, and there had to be a reason why I didn't send the box with her things to her, like I did with the one that contained Percy's things.

But of course, I couldn't find her to save my life. She wasn't by her locker, or in her next class. I called her house, but Hannah told me she wasn't there. I even thought about calling her dad, but then decided against it. I didn't need that trouble on top of everything.

I thought about every possible place she could be, until the most obvious one came to mind. I flung my backpack over my shoulder and darted for the parking lot. I searched for Thalia's car with my eyes, and saw it in the far corner of the lot. I ran for a few seconds and then stopped about two hundred feet away from her car. I smiled to myself; I could hear Green day blasting all the way to where I was standing. I walked to the car and peeked in. I saw something I thought I'd never see.

Thalia Grace crying her eyes out.

I didn't bother to let her know I was there; I just opened the door and sat in the passenger seat. Thalia looked at me for a second before she burst out crying again and threw herself at me. Because the space was small and cramped, when she pushed me backwards I hit my head on the window.

"Ow!"

"Crap! I'm sorry." She said through tears.

"Hey, stop crying. Thalia! Look at me!" I commanded. She sniffled and wiped the tears with the back of her hand. I smiled a little at her, just to show her I was still mad, but not to the point where I wouldn't talk to her.

"I'm so, so, so sorry! I wanted to tell you, but I didn't want to hurt you! And then you told me Percy's my cousin and you know how I get about family!" she blabbered hysterically through tears and snot and I had trouble following.

"Can you slow down a little bit?"

"What? Oh, sure. Please, don't hate me. I know I'm a goth, crazy, rock listening chick and everything, but… I need you Annabeth. I seriously can't live without my best friend in the world." She sniffled a little bit and I scrutinized her face. I never saw Thalia so... girl-like. Then, I threw my hands around her and pulled her into a big bear hug.

"You are such an idiot, Thalia. Do you know that?"

"Are you kidding me? That's the first thing the doctor told my mom: 'This kid will be an idiot'" she said in a deep voice and we burst out laughing.

"You will never, ever and I do mean ever, lie to my face again and keep something away from me. You got it?" I pointed a finger at her and Thalia raised her hands.

"If I do, I swear I'll stop listening to Green Day and give Jason my car." She said and I nodded. Some people would think she was kidding, but she was serious and that was a pretty drastic oath, especially for Thalia.

"Deal."

"By the way… Your boots are muddy."

* * *

**And of course, I couldn't keep them not talking to each other. I wouldn't have anything to write about! I know some of you will think Annabeth isn't being mad enough, but come on, be serious. Would you seriously stay mad at your best friend for a long period of time? I don't think so. Those little suckers are too important for us :D**

**Speaking of my little sucker, Leo, most of you asked me how we made up. Quite simply, actually. I walked into school and he was beside my locker. That's it. That's all it took. I pushed him, he laughed and we walked to class. That's how easy it is for best friends to forget about everything. At least it is for Leo and I. We had so many fights I can't even count that high. He and I are like... Dumb and Dumber. **

**And that's awesome! **

**Oh, and I saw you're not very fond of chocolate covered carrots. SHAME ON ALL OF YOU! I will go into my kitchen now and try to dip a carrot into a bowl of chocolate, and I'll tell you how it tastes in the next chapter. So be on the look out.**

**Love you :)**


	25. Father knows best

**Read and Review**

* * *

"Do you think you'll forgive him?" Thalia asked as she stuck the ice cream spoon in her mouth. We were in her car, parked in front of my house and eating ice cream that we picked up after school ended. We didn't see each other for a while and talked for even a longer period of time, so we had a lot to tell each other.

I thought about her question and then shrugged, "I don't know. Should I?" I asked her. Thalia gave me a questioning look as she bit the plastic spoon.

"Do you love him?" she gave me a counter question.

"I… yeah. I do. That's why this is so damn hard! If I didn't, I could just kick him out of my life and never speak to him again. Eventually I would forget about him. But with these… feelings, I can't imagine myself doing that!" I yelled and let my head fall onto the dashboard. "Ow."

"Nice one, genius."

"Shut up. Okay, seriously, what do I do?" I lifted my head up and looked at her. Thalia shrugged.

"I'm not really a professional in this area. If this was one of those play station games filled with blood and monsters, I would be your girl."

"Would you forgive Nico if he did something like this?" I asked her. Thalia's face turned sad and she started to stare at her ice cream and spin her spoon around the little bowl.

"That's an entirely different thing."

"How?" I exclaimed. I really couldn't see any difference between us.

"Nico and I aren't in love!"

"You're not?"

"No! Well at least I don't think we are! Shut up. Why are you doing this to me?" I smirked at her.

"Because you didn't tell me about the bet. Easy." I shrugged.

"I really sorry about that." She said for the millionth time.

"I know. Look, I have to go now. I can already hear Susan yelling at me for being late. And I've cried a lot today, so my head's really killing me." I said and opened the door, grabbed my backpack and stepped out of Thalia's car. Before I closed the door, I heard her shouting my name.

"Annabeth!" she yelled.

"Yeah?"

"For what it's worth, I think Percy really tried to protect you, even for a second." She said. I nodded after a few seconds.

"Thanks Thals."

"No problem. See you tomorrow Annie."

I walked to my house slowly, trying to make some order in my head. I didn't do much, since it was about hundred feet from the road to my front door. I yelled a 'I'm home' and went upstairs to put down my bag.

I thought about what I was going to do with Percy. Did he love me? I thought about this morning, when he told me he did. Did he say that just to save himself from losing the bet, or did he really mean it? I groaned, of course this would happen to me. Couldn't I be madder at him than this? I needed some advice, somebody to guide me in the right direction. Kick him out of my life? Or let him back in?

* * *

"Dad?" I knocked gently on his study door.

"Come in" I heard his mellow voice. I pushed the knob and went into his work room. I always liked it in here: tons of books, everything made from hard wood, dark… My dad and I had more in common then I had thought.

"I have a problem." I said. My dad raised his head from the book he was reading and took his glasses off. He marked the page and closed the book, putting it away. I knew I had his full attention.

"Is it something serious?"

"Well… not in some ways. But… it matters to me. A lot."

"Well then, what's the problem?" he asked me.

"It's… Percy."

"Okay…" my father trailed off, waiting for me to continue. I sat in a chair opposite to him and finally told him everything about the bet.

"So it turns out he was with me just because he made a bet. But he also says he loves me and I… don't know what to do." I said after I finished my story. My father was thinking this through, hard. After a few seconds of his forehead being scrunched, he looked at me.

"Do you love him too?"

"No." I lied before I could stop myself. Then I took a deep breath, "I… yeah, I do."

"Did he lie to you about other things?" my dad asked me while playing with his pen. I snorted.

"Yeah. And that's what I don't understand. Because when he looks at me, I can feel he loves me. But then why would he go and do this to me? Is he really that good at lying?" I asked him, frustrated.

My dad fidgeted in his chair, "Look Annabeth, I don't know what's true here. Obviously I don't know Percy enough to tell you the answer to your previous question, but what I can tell you is that men aren't that hard to understand as every woman on the Earth thinks."

"Yeah right." I snorted. My dad let out a laugh.

"Why don't you believe me? I'm serious."

"But then why does he do all these things that are so complicated and make my head spin around?"

"Well maybe the bet was, at first, a way to get something, but it changed to a way of him being closer to you."

"What? So you're saying he doesn't think of me as a stupid idiot?" I asked him and he laughed.

"Annabeth from what I've seen I can tell he doesn't think of you anything near stupid." I felt a smile cross my face and soon I was smiling like crazy.

"So you think he really loves me? That everything he said was true?"

"Well I can't possible know what he feels, but I think you know." I gave him a wary, bored look and slumped my shoulders.

"How am I supposed to know that? Obviously everything's screwed up. If I had known I wouldn't be in here right now listening to your mumbo jumbo dad. No offense."

My dad laughed and finally put the pen down, "It's not mumbo jumbo. What I mean to say is, you know what he feels even though you don't see it." He said.

"That makes even less sense." I said and looked away. My dad grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him. He had a small smile playing on his lips when he spoke.

"I'm serious. When a person falls in love, everything changes about them. It can be seen in their face, their eyes… It's like they have something special in their glance. Something like…" he snapped his fingers, trying to find the right word, but I already knew it.

"Like a sparkle?" I asked him. My dad snapped his fingers at me with a satisfied look on his face.

"Exactly."

"Percy has that. When we were at the winter formal and when we were dancing, he had that in his eyes. And then today, in the hall, when he told me he loves me he… also had it." I said and cracked a grin. My father smiled warmly at me.

"The love in someone's eyes can't be faked or lied about. It shows exactly how a person feels, no matter if they want it or not." He said, still smiling.

"Wow. I never thought about it that way. Thanks dad." I said, hugged him tightly and went for the door.

"Annabeth? What are you going to do?" he asked me.

"I'll figure something out. But I won't let him get away." I said and cracked a smile at my dad, who just laughed at me.

* * *

I was set on finding Percy the next day. I didn't know what I would do, or how I was going to do it, but I needed to see him. Dad told me I would know what to do when I see him, so I was counting on it.

But then, I saw Thalia and Nico, walking past by each other like they were strangers. It made Percy and mine's relationship seem less important. At least we got a chance to be with each other, even if it was fake… at first. But Nico and Thalia have been dying to be together for years now, and they never got a chance. So I made another mental note. Beside the 'Find Percy' one, I added 'and bring Thalico together.'

First, I spent my whole home room period trying to find Piper. I knew she would be able to help me, and maybe she could get Silena and Juniper to help as well. They were all friends, so there was a chance. When I finally found her, it was in my math class. Percy went back to his old seat in the back, far away from me. I was glad and sad at the same time. Glad because I would probably spent my entire period thinking about him. Sad because… well just because.

"Hey Piper." I greeted her and she smiled at me.

"Annabeth! What's up?"

"I… Can you help me with something?"

She nodded and got up, "Yeah. What do you need my help with?"

"I'm gonna bring Thalia and Nico together." I said. Piper's eyes widened.

"Whoa. Drastic move there Blondie. But sure, I'll help if I can. After all, you helped me with Jason so it's the least I can do." She smiled at me and I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

"That reminds me, can you tell Jason to find me after fourth period? I'll need his help too."

"Sure. But what can I do?"

"Here's what you're going to do…"

* * *

After math, I waited for Percy to come out of the classroom. He usually came out last. When he saw that I was waiting for him, he hesitantly walked over to me.

"Hi." I said and looked at him in the eyes. I was surprised at what I saw. Red, bloodshot eyes with big dark circled underneath them. He probably didn't get a wink of sleep last night. I could practically see the wall he built around himself, but I looked more carefully and there it was. My sparkle. My dad was right; no matter how much he tried to hide it, it was there.

"Hey." I fought with myself to keep in the grin and the excitement at what I saw.

"Can I ask you something?" I asked him and his head snapped up. He probably wasn't expecting that. He probably thought I was going to yell at him or do something even worse. I wanted to; I was still incredibly mad, but the more I looked at him, the more the anger went away.

"Sure. Anything." He said.

"I need your help at getting Thalia and Nico together." He frowned at me.

"What?"

"You heard me. I… I know we're screwed up, but they love each other Percy! In their own crazy, a little bit scary, gothic, emo way. But they still do. And it's not fair they suffer the consequences of the crap you and I did!" I raised my voice a little. Percy thought about it and nodded his head.

"I guess you're right."

"Good. You help me with this and I'll forgive you without thinking about it." I said and he cracked a smile.

"Really?" he asked, suddenly his voice full of hope. I refused to let him get to me. Stay strong Annabeth!

"Yeah. But just forgive. It doesn't mean getting back together." I said. I expected him to frown again, but the smile never left his face.

"Okay. What do we do?" he asked me, already getting worked up. I smiled at him. As we walked down the hallway while I was explaining my plan to him, I finally realized and saw it.

Percy Jackson really did love me.

* * *

"Annabeth, honestly, what are you doing? Ouch!" Thalia yelped as she stubbed her toe on a step. I snickered at her clumsiness and she growled at me.

"It's easy for you to laugh! You're not the one who is blindfolded and possibly getting kidnapped!" she yelled at me and I laughed some more. I was actually bringing Thalia into one of her own apartments. Jason gave me the keys. It was only a few minutes away from my house, so I'll be able to check up on Thalia and Nico. So in a way, she was right. I was kidnapping her.

I got inside and saw Percy already brought Nico in. He put his forefinger on his lips and told me to be quiet. In a swift move, he grabbed Nico's hands and while he protested, handcuffed him to a pole next to the couch. I specifically asked Jason to give us an apartment that had a pole in it. He looked at me like I had grown another head, but agreed to try and find one anyway. Thalia heard Nico and realized something was up. She started to trash around and fight me.

"Percy!" I yelled. He ran over to us, and carried Thalia to the couch, at which I started to laugh. He did the same thing with her like he did with Nico and handcuffed her to the pole, only she was seated on the couch opposite of the one Nico sat on. I went up to them and took their blindfolds off. When they saw each other they started to glare at us.

"Annabeth! What in the hell do you think you're doing?!" Thalia growled.

"Percy, you have a second to unlock this crap before I rip your head off!" Nico yelled. Percy just gave him a smartass look.

"And how are you planning to do that?" he said and crossed his arms at his chest.

"I… I… Just untie me!"

Percy shrugged, "Sorry, I can't do that buddy."

"I shall kill you." Thalia growled out. Percy and I looked at each other before we turned back to look at them, both of us grinning like idiots.

"Shall? Honestly, Thals, it's like we're in Middle Ages. Ta-ta!" Percy sang as we made our way outside. We heard them scream, yell and curse all the way downstairs.

"We did it!" I yelled happily and Percy grinned.

"You know, maybe we should have explained them what's going on." he said thoughtfully.

"Ah, I'll just tell them when I check up on them tomorrow. No biggie." I shrugged. "Hey. Thank you." I said. Percy smiled at me.

"To be honest, I've been dying to handcuff Nico since we became friends." he said and we laughed. Soon, the laughter started to die down, and we were left smiling.

"Listen Percy, about us..." I started but he raised his hand.

"You don't have to say anything Annabeth. I understand."

"What are you talking about?"

"I get it. You're right. You've been right all along. I was a horrible human being. I only cared for myself and how to make my life better. The fact I was wiling to trade your love for a car just proves what I was like. But that's history. I'm not like that anymore. You made me realize there are things more important. My family, Nico, Thalia... you. I'm okay with just being near you. The least I can do is not try to get you. It's what you want, right?" he asked me. I was dumbstruck and for a second, I forgot how to talk. There he was, the guy I was in love with, telling me he was sorry and that he was giving up. What was I supposed to do?

"Yeah." I squeezed out and grabbed the hand he extended.

"Friends." he said, still smiling. He was happy with the arrangement while i tried my best to stop myself from bawling my eyes out.

"Friends." I croaked out. He smiled at me again before he turned around and walked away, leaving me to stand there.

I was back at the start with him apparently. He played me, broke my heart and I was still the one who was watching him leave with a rock that weighted like Mount Olympus on my heart. When I turned to walk away, I tried to remember the phone number of the closest hospital, just to ask them if they give free shock therapies, because I seriously needed one. That's how crazy I was.

* * *

**Ho ho ho ho! **

**I hope you liked the part with Annabeth's dad. I really don't think he's so bad, after all, every parents loves their kid no matter what.**

**And Percy gave up! Or did he?**

**Annabeth's crazy... in looooove.**

**Thalia and Nico and handcuffed in an apartment. Alone.**

**And I'm only getting started.**

**Oh, and by the way, I tried the chocolate covered carrots. Let me just tell you, don't eat that unless you have a really strong stomach that could digest a cellphone. Otherwise you're screwed... Okay, I admit I was wrong about that one.**

**So goodbye, my chocolate covered... you know what? Let's just stick with chocolate :D**


	26. He is stupid like that

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Thalia POV**

I think Annabeth's taking this break up harder than she should. I mean, I get that she's hurt, but kidnapping Nico and I and handcuffing us to a pole in my own apartment? She's lost all of her marbles.

Nico and I struggled for about half an hour, before we got tired and gave up. There was no use; the pole was screwed into both the ceiling and the floor. We desperately tried to somehow wriggle out of the damn handcuffs, but nothing worked.

"They've gone crazy." I announced. Nico nodded and shook his hands some more.

"No kidding. And you only picked up on it after they've locked us up?" he asked me with a tired look.

"I… knew that." I lied.

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Okay, we can't do this right now." He stopped the quirk that was slowly turning into a full on argument. I sighed and nodded, though it was hard to stop trying to get a reaction out of him. We haven't talked since he left my house almost a month ago. It was killing me, but I refused to let him know that. We saw each other in the school, but we mainly just walked past by each other with a nod.

Then when Annabeth found out about the bet, I caught him looking at me more than once, but we still didn't talk. It was like both of us were too stubborn and competing to see which one would cave in first.

"How do we get out of these things?" he asked me and I thought about it for a second.

"Hair pin. I have one behind my ear, if you could just…" I said and lowered my head. Nico fumbled for a few seconds, feeling the spot around my right ear.

"There's nothing here." He said after a few minutes of searching.

I cursed under my breath, "Annabeth must have taken it. God, I hate it that she knows me so well!"

"When did she have time to take out a bobby pin from behind your ear?" he asked me with a confused look on his face. I just shrugged.

"There were situations."

"Whatever. Why did they bring us here anyway?" he asked me after a few long moments of awkward silence.

"Well, I bet you anything that one of the reasons is they can be near each other again. As if, plan their strategy and crap. And another one is probably because in their head they have this weird idea of us—"

"Being into each other?" Nico proposed and I looked up at him with wide eyes. He was looking at me with a small sarcastic smile playing on his lips.

"Exactly."

"Are they right?"

"You tell me." I smirked at him. All this time we were moving closer and closer to each other. His obsidian eyes were so deep, making me drown in pools of black. His eyes were probably one of the reasons I loved black so much, now that I think about it.

It took a second, an inch for our lips to touch, when the handcuffs dangled and tightened around my wrists. I think they did the same thing to Nico, because his face turned into a grimace.

"They didn't really think this through." He said and caused me to laugh out loud.

"Yeah, no kidding. They want to play matchmakers, but they can't properly adjust handcuffs." I snorted.

"Well at least they're spending time together. Maybe there's hope for them." He shrugged and we went back to our respective couches.

"Do you think it's a smart idea? The two of them being together again?" I asked him. Nico looked at me for a few second with a blank look on his face, probably thinking it through. Then he shrugged.

"Well even thought Percy's an ass, this bet made him fall for her. And based on what Annabeth told me, I'm pretty sure she could go past it if he made an effort. But…"

"But what?" I frowned at him. I liked his opinion until he said but.

"I think he won't." he said and my eyes popped right out of my skull.

"Why not?! Is he stupid?"

"Are you really asking me that?" Nico gave me a 'duh' look.

"This is not the time for you to be funny! Percy has to try to get her back! If he doesn't, both of them are going to regret it for a long time! And Percy's my family and Annabeth my best friend, I won't be able to live with that!" I yelled and in a surge of anger, started to struggle against the handcuffs.

"Thalia, stop that! You're going to cut yourself!" Nico yelled at me.

"Why would you care?!" I yelled at him and started to trash around. After a few second of ignoring him and his protests, I really felt blood ooze from my arm.

"I didn't want you to get hurt, you witch! Now look what you did to yourself!" he yelled.

"Aw crap." I groaned and let my head fall.

Annabeth and Percy were obviously serious about this whole kidnap thing. Nico and I were finally convinced when the clock started to tick eleven, and nobody showed up. I was hungry and thirsty and was ready to kick both of their butts. But eventually, after we complained our brains out, Nico and I slowly started to drift off to sleep. Nico was the first one to start snoring and surprisingly, he wasn't as loud as I thought he was going to be. Listening to his calm and even breathing made my eyes slowly come together.

And even thought I was cuffed to a metal pole, and had to sleep in a half-sitting position, I haven't slept that good in ages.

In the morning, we were awakened by someone unlocking the door. Annabeth appeared in front of us carrying a bunch of paper bags and coffee cups in her hands. She smiled when she saw us and sheepishly walked over to us.

"Are you planning on unlocking us?"

"Did you two… you know?" she said with a sly look on her face and wiggled her eyebrows. I looked at Nico, just to make sure he was still sleeping. Then I turned to Annabeth.

"No, we didn't, because you locked these things too tight and when we get too close to each other they cut into our wrists." I huffed and opened my mouth. Annabeth gave me a chicken sandwich and I bit into it. It felt so good to finally eat something, my stomach was growling like a hungry animal.

"But you tried?" she smirked at me which caused me to start choking on my sandwich.

"Whatever." I said after I stopped coughing. Nico started to stir in his sleep. Soon he opened his eyes and shot up when he saw Annabeth.

"Coffee." He drawled out and I rolled my eyes. Instead of fighting with her to unlock us, he begs for coffee. My hero.

Annabeth smiled at him and stuck a straw in one of the cups. Nico gave her a dark look when he saw the straw, but after Annabeth shrugged at him in a 'take it or leave it' way, he brought his lips to the straw and started to chug coffee.

"So, how are you and my undestined jackass of a cousin?" I asked her as I chewed on my food. Annabeth pursed her lips.

"That's over." Nico stopped drinking and I stopped eating. We turned to her with shocked faces.

"What?"

"He told me how he realizes what an awful person he has been, but that he isn't like that anymore. He also said he is okay with us just being friends, considering how much he hurt me. So that's the crappy ending of my crappy love story." She said and slumped on the couch next to me.

"I am so going to kick his ass…" Nico muttered. Annabeth let out a laugh.

"The stupidest thing in all of this is that I want him back! He played me in the worst way possible, and yet I'm the one who's pining for him!" she yelled and threw her hands up. Nico and I looked at each other and I smiled at my blonde best friend.

"People do crazy shit when they're in love."

"No kidding." She mumbled and shook her head. "I have to go, I have a free period but it's about to end. See you lovebirds later." She smiled at us one more time before she opened the door.

"Wait, you're not going to unlock us?! Annabeth!"

"Nope. Sorry. Your jackass cousin will come to see you after school!" She yelled and closed the door behind her, locking it twice. I rolled my eyes at her paranoia. Not that it wasn't completely justified.

"Is she high? For how long are they keeping us in here?" Nico said. I shrugged.

"I think she needs this. Something to keep her mind away from Percy. Maybe we should stop fighting it, I'm sure we'll be out anytime soon.

Nico started intently at me, "Wow. I can't believe you're willing to be locked to a pole with me just to help Annabeth."

"Sure I am. Besides, you're not the worst company I could have." I shrugged and smiled at him.

"Smooth."

"Tell me about it."

* * *

The second we heard keys jingle, Nico and I sat up straight. Percy walked in and had his back turned to us.

"What are you doing?" Nico asked him with a frown.

"I prefer to be hit or stabbed in that back." He said. Nico and I rolled our eyes.

"Seaweed Brain, we can't go to the bathroom. Do you really think I have sharp objects with me right now?"

"Right. I brought you… I don't know what. Annabeth just shoved these in my hands and ran away." He shrugged, kind of sadly. Nico and I started to bombard him with questions the second he placed the food on the table.

"Are you stupid?"

"Why did you give up?"

"You can't give up on her!"

"You love her!" we yelled at the same time and Percy looked taken aback before his face broke out in a grin.

"I'm not giving up."

"You're not?" Nico and I asked at the same time. We looked at each other; I saw he was just as confused as I was.

"No. Actually, I already know what I'm going to do to get her back." He smiled contently and I felt a grin spread over my face as well.

"Perseus Jackson, are you telling us you have a plan?"

"Yes, in fact I do. And I've already started phase one."

"WELL?!" we yelled at him.

"Well what?"

"What is the plan, dumbass?!" I screamed.

"Oh. I can't tell you that. Besides, I don't even know if it will work out the way I hope it will." He shrugged. Once again he started to feed us.

"And you two?"

"What about us?" Nico asked tiredly.

"Don't play stupid. You know why Annabeth brought you here."

"Speaking of, what about our parents?" it occurred to me. Percy smiled sheepishly.

"Well, your dad thinks you're staying at Annabeth's house, and Nico's mom thinks he's with me."

"And Jason?"

"Thalia, he helped. Who do you think gave us the keys to this place?" he grinned widely.

"I'm gonna kill him! That traitor!" I yelled angrily. But I don't think it was as angry as it was supposed to be. The truth is, I liked being with Nico so much. We talked for hours because we had nothing else to do. I already know everything about him, starting with his middle name and ending with the color of his socks.

"Calm down. It's in our best intention. Oh, crap! I have to head home; my mom will be calling me soon." He said and started to pack up his things.

"Wait, when are you going to let us out?"

"When we see result."

* * *

We were in that apartment for four days. Four days! Annabeth, Percy and Jason switched and visited us a few times a day, bringing us food and water. They would unlock us only to let us go to the bathroom and take a shower and change into some fresh clothes. I was starting to feel like a real prisoner when on a Friday, Annabeth and Percy barged in, in a rush and sweaty.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked them. Nico and I were in the middle of guessing colors and whatnot to make the time go by faster.

"We screwed up! Your dad knows and he's coming here!" Annabeth yelled and ran over to us. Percy fumbled with the lock and then I felt my arms fall out of them. I was free.

A minute after they unlocked Nico and hid the handcuffs in their pockets, my dad stormed through the front door. Nico and I shot up and now we were all standing and looking at him with wide eyes.

"Thalia? I… I don't understand. I thought you two were locked in here."

I looked at Nico. We had a silent conversation. I raised my eyebrows, as if to ask him should we tell the truth. His left eye twitched l slightly and I knew what it meant. Way before, when Annabeth and Percy were still together, Nico and I created our way of communicating with each other.

I turned my attention back to my dad, "Why would you think that?" from the corner of my eyes I saw that Percy's and Annabeth's eyes grew double their usual size. I smirked to myself; they thought we were going to rat them out.

"The neighbors heard a lot of yelling and some thought people were constantly in here. So you weren't locked up in here?"

"Dad, don't be ridiculous. Nico and I simply came here because we had some school stuff to do, and I couldn't think of any other place." Okay, so that wasn't my best lie, but my dad seemed to buy it.

"Thalia if—excuse me." He said and fished his phone out of his pocket. I smirked again; I knew he wasn't it state to give me his attention for more than a minute. I was counting on it.

"Why did you cover for us?" Annabeth whispered in my ear.

"Because now… I get to do this." I whispered back before I walked over to where Nico was standing. He looked at me with a surprised look before I grabbed his shirt and pulled him towards me. When his lips crashed against mine, I could finally feel my brain blow up and seep through my body.

A surprisingly good feeling.

* * *

**Why did everyone think the last chapter was the last of the story?! O.O By my calculations, this story will have 30 chapters + an epilogue if you guys want one. **

**I don't have a short story today, because I really don't have the time. I have to go to the hospital to check on my leg. It's been more sore than it should be in the past two days... My little bro and Leo are coming with my mom and I, so that should be fun. Leo wants to go because he says he feels guilty about tripping me. Dumb ass. I should ask my brother to kick him in his special boy place again.**

**Bye :) Thank you for reviewing or favoriting or subscribing, it means a lot and makes my day :D**


	27. Above everything

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Annabeth POV**

I suppose you could say things have gone back to normal. Thalia and Nico were finally a real couple. They didn't change much though, she still kicked him every once in a while and he was still sarcastic, sardonic and a little bit scary at times. To be honest, they didn't act like a couple as much as I would like. They held hands every fifth day and I never saw them hug or kiss.

But that was school. I don't even want to think about their activities when nobody was around to see them. I don't need to be scarred for life.

Percy and I… well we stayed away from each other. I couldn't stand looking at him and knowing I'll never be able to think of him other than my "friend." In class we didn't speak to each other, and at lunch we sat at opposite sides. We did pretty much everything just to not get tempted. And trust me, whenever I saw him in the hall, I got tempted to… never mind.

Before I knew it or could even take a deep breath, spring break rolled around. I remembered how much pain winter break brought me, so I wasn't exactly optimistic about this one. But something in the way Sun shone a week before we were supposed to leave for Boston, our designated place for spring break, made me think this time will be different..

"Why Boston, out of all places?" I asked Thalia after they told us that's where we're going.

"I heard that it's because it wouldn't take a lot out of their budget. Apparently, there's a five star hotel that's willing to take us all in half price." She said.

"Cheapskates." I mumbled, " They're close to bankrupt, aren't they?"

"Noooo, because every normal five star hotel loves to have a bunch of crazy teenagers. Did you know that before them, over fifteen hotels said no?" Thalia said sarcastically.

A few weeks after that, I had to start packing. I sighed as I stuffed my clothes into my suitcase. We were taking a plane and I felt pretty fidgety about that. I have never flown in a plane before, so I was nervous.

Susan helped me pack and after she was out of my room, I grabbed my phone. I quickly typed Thalia's number and waited for her round head to pick up.

"Hello?" I heard her. She was panting and breathing heavily which got me worried and made me turn red.

"Thalia… is Nico there?" I asked slowly, not really wanting to know.

"No. Why would you think that?" she asked me, confused.

"No reason." I quickly said.

"Okaaaay… What's up?"

"I just wanted to see what you're doing. I just finished packing and I'm so bored."

"You? Bored? I never would have thought it was possible."

"Shut up."

"Hah, sorry. No, I was just carrying some boxes to Jason's room, that's why I'm panting like a dog in the middle of the summer. Both him and his room are filled with some much crap I can't even describe it."

"And you thought you would help him by bringing more crap into his room?"

"When you say it that way, it sounds stupid. Jason shut the hell up already, I'm coming!" she screamed at Jason but forgot to move the phone away from her mouth. That's why I moved mine; I could feel my ears bleeding.

"Annabeth, I have to go, I'll call you later. If not, see you tomorrow at JFK." She said and cut the connection. I frowned, so much for her always being there for me.

When my alarm clock rang in the morning, I felt like I didn't sleep for five minutes, let alone eight hours. I trudged to the bathroom, took a very long shower and got dressed. The weather was supposed to be nice in Boston, so I put on a pair of jeans, a shirt with print on it and put on my Converse. At least I felt like myself since I didn't feel alive.

Susan dropped me off to the airport, and we waited for Thalia to come. I expected her to be late, but she was surprisingly early, even before Nico, Piper and a few others.

I saw Percy talking to his mom in the back and I smiled to myself, I haven't told anyone about my plan. I couldn't wait to tell him. He caught me looking at him and sent me a small smile. I nodded to him and quickly tried to get into a conversation with Piper. But just like everyone else, she barely kept her eyes opened, so the conversation wasn't really a brain-buster.

Thalia trudged over to me, carrying her giant suitcase with one hand. We were staying there for ten days and I was surprised she didn't bring more. On my way here, I saw a girl with three suitcases and a few carry-ons.

"Good morning."

"What's so good about it?" she growled at me.

"Okay Grumpy pants."

"Just leave her alone." Nico walked over to us, followed by the Stoll brothers, and fell into the chair beside Thalia.

"I see you're also a morning person."

"Yeah, yeah." He mumbled and threw his hand over Thalia's shoulders. She mumbled something half asleep and pressed herself against him.

"PDA." Connor said. Travis bumped him with his shoulder.

"You know you love it."

"Guys!" I exclaimed and looked at them with wide eyes.

"What?" they asked at the same time and shrugged.

"Creeps."

"It doesn't even begin to describe them." Katie, Silena and Clarisse showed up. Silena was dragging about five suitcase and bags with her, while Clarisse only had a medium sized travelling bag.

"What's this, a get together?" Thalia asked when she looked around.

"We were bored, standing there waiting for Chiron and Mr. D." the fact that the principal and the substitute principal had to go with us only proved how 'good' some parts of our generation are… *cough* Stolls *cough*

"Whoa, what's with all the people?" I heard Percy's voice. Thalia stiffened and looked at me, but when I smiled at her she relaxed into Nico's arms again.

"Hey man." Nico greeted him sleepily.

"Hey." To my surprise, he greeted me and sat next to me.

"Hi." I said, confused.

He was just about to say something when he heard a voice over the intercom. "This is the first call for all the passengers on the flight 562. We are now going to start boarding the plane. I repeat; this is the first call for passengers on the flight 562." I sighed; it was just like Percy to come a second before we leave. We awkwardly got up, grabbed our things and everyone darted towards the exit.

The blond girl that checked out our tickets also checked out Percy, which made my blood boil and my stomach churn. So, when I walked by her, I "accidentally" pushed a big stack of papers that was on her counter. The papers fell and covered everything in a five feet radius from the counter.

I scrunched my eyebrows and looked at Percy who was in front of me. The jealous part of me was going wild. I don't mean to sound possessive, but what's mine is mine, and I don't like sharing.

I looked at my ticket to see what seat I'm supposed to take. I checked the rows. 19B… 19B… When I spotted it, I thought there was some kind of mistake at hand. Percy sat in that row, in the seat 19A. I cocked my head as I processed the information.

Then I spotted Nico heading over to where Thalia was sitting and I rushed over to him.

"Please, please I beg of you, let's trade seats!"

"Why?"

"I can't sit next to Percy for four hours! I might lose my mind and start to count unicorns and chickens!" I yelled and shook him. Nico grabbed my hands.

"Okay, okay. We'll trade. Just don't start counting chickens. Jeez." He shook his head and walked off to Percy's seat. I sighed in relief, one problem less.

I felt a lot easier as I sat next to Thalia. She raised her eyebrows at me, "We traded. I got stuck with Percy." I explained.

"Ah…" she said and nodded in understanding.

"By the way, how much did you bribe them to put Nico in a seat next to you?"

"I didn't do that!" she yelled and I raised my eyebrow. "Fifty bucks." She mumbled and I laughed. She was so cute when she did things like that.

"You crazy, love sick idiot." I shook my head at my best friend.

"Whatever." She said in a bored tone but she had a smile on her face.

"Hey where's Jason?" I said, looking around the plane.

"In the bathroom. Piper and him…"

"I get it! Shut up!" I raised my hand and yelled at her. Thalia chuckled.

For the rest of the trip, Thalia and I listened to music, played Rock, paper, scissors; talked about our classmates and then delved into the complicated topic that are Nico and Percy.

"So, you have a plan too?"

"What do you mean 'too'?"

"No, that was a typo."

"What?"

"UGH! Annabeth just shut up for a second! I can't think while you're babbling your mouth off."

"You said 'too'. Thalia, are you keeping something away from me?" I asked her suspiciously.

"Okay, I am. But I swear to God, this is a good thing. If I tell you, I'll just ruin your future happiness." She smiled at me and I frowned.

"Future happiness?"

"A very close future happiness." She nodded her head.

"Okay... I'll wait."

"Good girl. Hey, we're here!" she shouted and I pushed by her to look out the window. I saw the buildings of Boston and the city looked pretty amazing. Of course, I am a New Yorker, so there isn't a chance for any city to be better than New York for me. New York City is above everything.

It took us over an hour to get, as Thalia said it, our shit together. The landing went fine, but after that all Hell broke loose. Nobody could find their things and Silena started to cry because she thought she lot all of her makeup. Turns out, her bags just got carried out of the plane later, because of some weight limit problem.

When we finally got into that bus, I was sweaty, hungry and tired. I was squished to the window by Leo, who jumped into the seat next to me.

"Hey Annabeth!" he said. He looked like he was hopped up on sugar.

"Are you okay? You seem kind of… jumpy."

"Oh yeah, that's just from five maxi sodas I had on the plane and seven candy sticks. Sugar should by down by… tomorrow." He said and jumped in his seat.

"Whoa, okay. Just… breathe."

"Hah, okay. So who are you sharing your room with?"

"What?" I looked at him, confused by his question. No one told me anything.

"Well Percy, Nico, Jason, Connor, Travis and I are in one room. Who are you with?"

"How do you know who you're with?"

"Chiron gave us a list. Look!" he yelled excitedly and handed me a sheet of paper. I looked and saw their names along with the room number written on it. There were some rules on there too, and in the bottom of the page, Chiron wrote 'Stay away from the girl's rooms!' and underlined it multiple times. It made me crack a huge grin.

"Nobody told me. I'm undetermined." I shrugged and handed Leo his paper back.

"But… I heard Thalia say something about it." He said and gave me a weird look. My head snapped up and I looked in Thalia's direction. She sat with Juniper and was laughing at something she said. I struggled for a few second to get out of my seat and started to make my way towards Thalia.

Of course, I already knew some higher force hated me, so just as I was walking over to Thalia, the bus driver stomped on the brake and the bus flew forward. It made me lose my balance. I stumbled backwards and fell into someone's lap. I looked up and saw Percy's shocked face staring down at me.

"Hi." I said lamely. Nico was silently laughing next to him. He turned his head so I wouldn't see him, but it didn't stop me from socking him on the arm.

"Hey!" he said, at first serious but then he started to crack up. I realized I was still sitting in Percy's lap. I shot up and blushed a deep red.

"Sorry 'bout that," I mumbled. By now, Nico was banging his head on the window from laughter.

"Shut up di Angelo, or I just might make a sweater for myself using your hair." I growled and stalked off.

"Damn woman." I heard him mumble. I shook my head and squeezed in Thalia's seat.

"Ow! Annie, what are you doing?!"

"I need to talk to you. Hey Juniper." I smiled at the girl that sat next to Thalia and was looking at us with a smile on her face.

"Hi Annabeth." She said gently. I liked Juniper. Her bright green eyes looked like they were smiling twenty-four-seven. I envied her for that. She had long amber hair that framed her long face. She was Grover's long time girlfriend, but they currently maintained a distance relationship. Grover went to Canada as a part of a foreign exchange student. I missed him; he was always crazy funny.

"Who am I bunking with?" I turned my attention to Thalia, who grinned wickedly.

"You found out about that, huh?"

"God damn it Thalia! Just tell me already!" I yelled at her and she just rolled her heavily coated eyes.

"Fine. You, me, Piper, Katie, Silena, that stretch of Drew and… Rachel." she finished dramatically.

I think I just threw up in my mouth.

* * *

**It's a lighter chapter for a change. I liked writing it, but I have a problem.**

**I lost my stuffed mouse. **

**It's killing me! I've had it since I was six and now it just disappeared! I'm suspecting you-know-who took it, but he denies it. Should I break his feet now or later? Opinions are greatly appreciated! **

**Hope you liked the chapter... Bye!**


	28. Annabeth's a GPS

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Percy POV**

Nico and I were talking when I heard Annabeth's voice from the back of the bus.

"R- Rachel? Who the hell put her in our room?!" she shrieked. Nico and I looked at each other and at the same time, and then jumped in our seats to check out what's happening. We turned around and saw Annabeth possibly having a stroke.

"Thals! What's happening?!"Nico yelled to Thalia. She looked at us and grimaced.

"I think she's having a seizure. How do you stop that?"

"What happened?" I repeated Nico's question.

Thalia rolled her blue eyes, "Ah, she found out we have to bunk with Rachel. I'll get her to calm down." I raised my eyebrows at Nico and he shrugged.

"Don't look at me. I don't know even know who I'm bunking with." he said.

"Me, dumbass."

"Oh. Cool." He nodded his head and sat back down in his seat. I followed him and he grabbed his iPod from his bag. I groaned and let my head fall back on the seat.

"Not Green Day! Anything but Green Day! We listened to it all through the plane ride; I can't deal with it now!" I complained and moaned and Nico rolled his eyes.

"Fine, calm your hormones down, Percy."

He put some Coldplay and OneRepublic on replay and I took the silence as an opportunity to check out the city. It was pretty awesome, with structural buildings and parks that surrounded them, with some trees being arranged in a clockwise order.

Huh, I guess Annabeth rubbed off on me.

I started to think about her again, and that was taking up a lot of my energy and mental capacity, so I was glad when the driver finally pulled the bus over. We were let out in front of a giant hotel, much like some of them in New York. So Boston wasn't really all that different, except it was quieter and calmer.

I handed Nico his bags and grabbed my own. We pushed out through the crowd of teenagers and squealing girls until we broke out near the entrance of the hotel. Then I heard someone curse and yell, and soon I saw Annabeth walk over to us.

"Five suitcases. Five suitcases just ran over my feet! Stupid female population and their heavy clothes!" she yelled angrily and tried to remove dirt from her shoes. Nico and I snickered at her.

"Hey guys!" we heard someone else yell and turned around, only to see Jason and Leo making their way towards us.

"This is crazy!" Leo yelled.

"No kidding." Annabeth grumbled. Thalia, Piper and Juniper also approached us. I was starting to suffocate a bit because of all the people. Not to mention Annabeth was staring at me, and that was making me fidget. The look she gave me was enough to make me forget everything I was thinking of, but I forced myself to remember I had a plan in motion. If I went and cave in now, I would blow it. It probably wasn't a good idea to make any more plans, but these were desperate measures, and something I really wanted to do for Annabeth.

"Where do we go now?" Jason asked.

"We have to wait for Chiron. If we leave now, we'll all get chopped to pieces." I said. Everyone nodded and for the next few minutes, nobody said anything. Thalia was making fun of some girl, and that caused us to laugh, Piper and Jason were squabbling about something, and Annabeth and I were in the middle of a stare down when Chiron strode over to us.

"Ah, another group. Okay, listen up. This hotel is not a jungle. I don't want to wake up one day and hear you tore it down. So please, keep the crazy down to a minimum. But, this is your spring break after all, and you can do whatever you like, as long as it is in the reasonable boundaries. Your parents are counting on me to get you home in one piece, so please… Try as well." He said.

"Do we have a curfew?" Connor asked, suddenly appearing behind Annabeth. She jerked and was about to knock him out but then lowered her fist. Connor went pale for a second, but then his face filled with color. Annabeht could be pretty scary.

"Yes. Three am. That's when I'll go through the rooms and expect you all to be there. Understood?" we all nodded and the group erupted in a chorus of 'yeah's' and 'sure's'.

Once Chiron was out of sight, Travis snickered, "Only three? And I was counting with six." This caused all of us to burst out laughing, well everyone except Katie.

She smacked him on the chest and scowled at him, "Behave."

"Yes, dear." He crossed his arms and Katie rolled her eyes at him. I had no idea how she puts up with Travis all the time.

"Let's go idiots!" Nico shouted loudly and caused us to look at him. I have never heard him that loud. Everyone fell silent; we just grabbed our things and shuffled out of that street in a second.

Nico could easily be a dictator if he wanted to be.

**Thalia POV**

The lobby was definitely a sight for sore eyes. High ceilings, luxurious furniture, pictures on the snow white walls… I wasn't much of an arts and crafts person, but even I was impressed. Annabeth looked like she stepped into her own personal paradise. She spun her head around so much I was afraid it would fall off. I bet she was trying to soak up as much details as she could. I found that stupid, it's not like we're not going to be here for the next ten days.

We got to the front desk and handed them some cards that Chiron gave us. They typed for a few seconds and then started to give out room keys. I grabbed the one marked 672. Annabeth told us we have to go to the sixth floor. I wasn't very comfortable with that since it was fairly high, not to mention we had to take an elevator.

I caught Nico's eyes and he mouthed '674.' I flashed him a grin and mouth '672' he smirked at me and winked before Percy and Jason pushed him along.

The girls and I broke out in the room and then stopped to look around. It was one of those customized suites, painted in light purple and with dark furniture. Annabeth's mouth fell open, I knew she loved purple.

"Pretty awesome, right?" I asked her and she just nodded.

"Are you kidding me?" we heard someone yell. Annabeth and I whipped around and saw Rachel with her hands on her hips, fuming.

"Oh look." Annabeth said dryly.

"Why are you here?" Drew demanded.

"We're the welcoming committee." I spat out lazily. I saw Annabeth try to hold her laughter in.

"What did you think? That you are getting get a suite for being you?" Piper came up. She raised her eyebrows at Rachel as she waited for an answer.

"Whatever, losers."

"How about this, you talk crap about us when we're not in the room, and we'll be sure to return the favor." Annabeth smiled evilly at Rachel. I felt proud of myself. I taught her that evil smile. Annabeth walked away to unpack her suitcase and Rachel did the fatal mistake of opening her mouth.

"So Annabeth… how'd you like Percy's little bet?" Annabeth turned around slowly and gave her a look so full of hate even I felt a little bit freaked out.

"You did not just say that." She growled and took two steps forward, ready to rip her red hair out. But before she could reach her, Piper grabbed her shoulders and pulled her backwards. I waved my hand dismissively at Piper.

"Aw, Piper let her! It's not like didn't deserve it."

"I'm sure she did, but I don't want Annabeth to get into trouble. Help me!" she groaned as Annabeth struggled. I sighed and walked up to Rachel.

"Did you know Luke called you a brain-dead idiot with a taste so bad that the clown from McDonald's pukes when he sees you?" I said and everyone went silent. Well, everyone but Clarisse, who was just entering the room when she heard me. She burst out laughing and didn't stop for the next five minutes.

"He didn't say that." Rachel growled at me with a fake confidence dripping out of her mouth. She was right, those words never left his mouth, but that didn't stop me from screwing with her.

"You keep telling yourself that redhead." I shrugged and grabbed my suitcase to unpack. Rachel was quiet for a second before she opened the door and sprinted to Luke's room. I snickered to myself, and Annabeth followed.

"That wasn't very pretty."

"Yeah well, neither is she. Besides, weren't you the one that was about to kill her?"

"That's different."

"Sure it is Annie. Don't worry, I got your back." I grinned at her and she rolled her eyes, but I could see the corners of her lips twitch.

"I'm gonna go unpack, you bag of crazy."

"I know you are, but what am I?! I yelled after her, which only earned me a shoe that came flying after a few seconds. I laughed; of course she would throw high-heels at me.

* * *

Annabeth said Boston wasn't a very interesting city when it came to historic facts, but I didn't think that while she drilled me with about nine billion of them. For a city that wasn't very interesting to her, she sure had a lot to say about it.

"Okay, do you ever shut up?" I moaned after she told me a story about how some streets got its name. I mean seriously, who cares about that?!

"I only had a few facts left Thalia." She rolled her eyes.

"Really? Because I think you said that about three hours ago. I know that because I still had some sanity left!"

"Harsh." She mumbled but stayed silent for the next few minutes. She was going through a pamphlet of some kind. I breathed out in relief; the only thing I wanted to do is take a stroll around the city, not hear its entire history.

"Thalia!" I heard someone call after me. I turned around and saw Jason, Piper and Leo running towards us. I groaned again; I couldn't get any peace in this city. I just got Annabeth to shut up when my brother and his chatty friends decided to bug me.

"What do you want?" I spat at him.

"Aren't you supposed to be nice to your family?" Jason grinned.

"Aren't you supposed to be good-looking?" I retorted.

"Don't listen to her; she's just pissed off because Nico's not around." Annabeth mumbled, her head still shoved in that piece of paper.

"That's not true! Annabeth, read that thing and shut up."

"Nope, I'm done." She smirked and put the pamphlet in her pocket.

"Of course you are." I mumbled; my mood even worse than before.

"Hey, do you guys have like a map or something? I don't really know my way around Boston." Leo said, while scratching the back of his head.

"Why do hell do I need a map? I have Annabeth. She remembers everything she blabs about. Best GPS in the world." I said. Piper laughed and Annabeth shot me a look.

I shrugged innocently, "What? I'm telling the truth."

"Oh shut up. Anyway, where are we gonna go? Thalia and I have walked around the city for over two hours."

"Don't remind me." I grumbled and kicked a rock that I tripped on.

"You are such a grump. Will you lighten up?" Leo asked me and then put his hand around me. I stopped dead in my tracks and slowly turned my head around.

"I give you three seconds to move that hand Leo. Move it or lose it." I growled out and he retreated in a matter of seconds. Annabeth laughed loudly.

"She's taken Leo. Sorry." Jason barked out a laugh.

"Whatever. Can we go eat something? I'm hungry!" I whined. Soon, I had both Leo and Piper wailing along with me, and together we drove Jason and Annabeth nuts. In the end, my blonde best friend threw her hands up in frustration and turned to us with a look of pure aggravation on her face.

"Fine! Damn it, we're gonna go eat something. Just shut up already!" she yelled. People that passed by us gave her weird looks but I don't think she noticed. Either that or she was pretending she didn't notice.

Half an hour later, we all burst out of a fast food restaurant and were getting high on junk food.

"I can't believe I just paid six bucks for a pizza slice!" Annabeth exclaimed once we got out on the street, each of us with pizza in their hands.

"Whatever. It's so good." Leo moaned and bit off a big chunk.

"You eat like a pig." I remarked.

"And you look like one too." Piper said disgusted, and wiped off some tomato sauce from his shirt.

"Thalia?" I heard someone call me again, but this time I was actually glad to hear that voice.

"Oh, finally someone normal!" I yelled when I saw Percy and Nico walking towards us, drinking cokes. Then the Stolls walked out and I felt my eyes widen, "No, no, no! Go away! All of you!"

Annabeth chuckled from beside me, "Didn't you know that Nico comes as a package deal? You order him and get three other morons as a side dish." She smiled.

"Marvelous."

"Where were you guys?" Piper asked them.

"Well, we looked around a bit, saw some boring statues of dead people, some big buildings… Eh, everything that you can find in New York." Connor shrugged.

"Not one thing." Annabeth said and all of us groaned, "Oh shut up."

"Where do you wanna go?" Percy piped up.

Annabeth smiled mysteriously. "You'll see."

* * *

"It's a church." I said simply.

"Yeah. Isn't it amazing?" Annabeth said dreamily.

"You brought us all the way down here to see a church?" I asked her again.

"It's not just a church. It's the Church of the Covenant, one of the oldest in Boston. Its construction lasted two years. It's basically…"

"A gothic structure with about 240 foot high steeple." Percy said and we all turned to look at him with our mouths open.

"What? I listen."

"He lost it too." Nico shrugged.

"How did you know that?" Annabeth asked him with a slight awe coloring her voice. Percy shrugged again.

"I dunno. It's just popped into my head. You talk a lot about buildings." He smiled.

"Yeah." She stuttered, still in daze.

"Snap out of it Blondie. Do you have any other place, one that is actually… how do I put this? Fun."

"Well… No. They don't write about fun buildings in my bibles." Annabeth said, "I- I mean, my books." She said and frowned. Percy looked as if he was holding back a grin. When they stalked off, I caught up with Annabeth and pulled her back.

"What was that all about?"

"It's just something Percy always said about me and my books. I guess I just picked up on it."

"That's it?" I asked her suspiciously.

"Yeah." She said, but it sounded like she was convincing herself, not me.

That's okay, I didn't buy that crap anyway.

* * *

**Ah Thalia, I always love writing in your POV. Such a practice for sore fingers... Oh my lord, two chapters left. I think I might start crying.**

**And by the way, it wasn't Leo who took my mouse-buddy! It was my mom, who stuffed it in the washing machine. And I only found out after I called Leo a "stupid, disgraceful, douche bag of a best friend." *awkward* I feel terrible now. I wanna say I'm sorry, but I'm still not going to school, and he won't pick up. Since he reads this, I would just like to say: "Leo, I know you didn't take it. I'm sorry. Love you lots, but you're still a douche bag because you won't pick up."**

**Ah, the complicated world of best friends...**

**Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter, my friend read it and she says it's good. Let me know what you think! ****:D**


	29. Blindfolded into oblivion

**Read and Review**

* * *

**Annabeth POV**

After Thalia and Jason almost dragged me away from that church, everyone started to decide where they were going to go and what they were going to do. Travis and Leo decided to go and watch some baseball game. Nico and Percy dragged Jason along with them and they went to catch some action movie they've been dying to see. Connor chased after some girl he randomly met on the street. She looked a bit flashy, but hey, who am I to judge?

Piper, Thalia and I were the only ones who didn't have a destination in mind. Well I did, but Thalia said she didn't feel like dying in some museum, so I didn't push her.

"Where are we going to go?" I asked them after we finished slurping our sodas.

"How about we just head back to the hotel? I'm kind of deadbeat." Piper said. Thalia nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah! We could change into our pajamas and watch a movie or something. I wanted to watch the last part of Harry Potter since it got released." Piper and I looked at her, amused. Thalia saw our faces and grinned widely.

"What? Harry's awesome." She laughed and we linked our arms, heading back to the hotel.

We opened the door and stopped dead in our tracks. Pillows everywhere, clothes thrown around the floor, beds turned over. The curtains were hanging over the TV, the chairs were tipped over and in the middle of the room, I saw one of my socks, looking very lonely.

Or at least I think I did, because at that second ran Rachel through the room, screaming her head off. She saw us and darted behind us to hide, and we soon learned why. A very angry Clarisse stomped out of the adjoined room.

"Help me! Hide me!" Rachel yelled. Thalia frowned, walked to one of the mini refrigerators and pulled out a small pack of ice with a satisfied look on her face.

"Bingo." She exclaimed, walked up to Clarisse and stuffed the ice bag in her shirt. Clarisse immediately started to trash around, trying to get the ice cubes out of her shirt.

"What are you doing, stupid?!" she shrieked and Thalia looked at her with an amused look on her face.

"I needed you to cool off. Look what you did to our room!" she yelled and opened her arms to point out the mess they made. The room was barely recognizable.

"Why did you get in a fight anyways?" I asked them.

"I caught her going through my things!" she yelled and stumbled towards Rachel again, who screamed and used me as her human shield.

"Whoa, whoa! Calm down! Rachel, what were you doing with her things?"

"We have the same suitcase! I thought it was mine, but before I could explain it to her, she charged at me!" she yelled defensively.

"It's not like you don't deserve to get run over by Clarisse." Thalia pointed out with a look on her face.

"Thals!" I scowled.

"Fine, sorry." She mumbled with her shoulders slumped.

"Ugh. Now what do we do? I see you trashed my bed, so where am I supposed to sleep?"

"Uh…" Clarisse and Rachel drawled out at the same time. I looked around the room before I turned to face them.

"Where is my mattress?" I almost growled out.

"We…"

"Uh…"

"WHERE IS IT?!" I yelled. Clarisse smiled sheepishly and pointed at the window.

"You…THREW MY MATTRESS OUT THE WINDOW?!" I screeched, practically ripping my hair out. I ran to the window, but I didn't see anything.

"Where is it?" I turned to them with a confused look on my face. Clarisse rolled her eyes.

"We didn't throw it out the window, duh. And you call yourself smart?"

"Where… is… it?" I said in a low and deadly tone.

"In the bathroom." I ran to the bathroom and found it there, soaked to its last thread. I groaned, what was I supposed to do now?

"Thalia!" I called out.

"Yeah?" I heard her muffled voice.

"I'm sleeping with you tonight!"

"Uhh… I don't think Nico would like that." I heard her laugh a second later. I growled, she was flat-out mocking me.

"Bite me, Grace."

"The way I sleep, I just might."

* * *

Sleeping with Thalia is a new synonym for a nightmare. She kicks, punches, sprawls out and spits in her sleep. Not to mention the truck-like snoring that kept me up most of the night. Piper had some ear plugs, but she didn't have enough for all of us. So Rachel and I stayed up all night listening to Thalia make so much noise like an elephant in a screw shop.

I walked to breakfast the next morning feeling like a zombie. I was so tired I didn't even see Percy who was running towards the restaurant. He crashed into me and made me snap up from my sleep walking.

"Oh, crap! Annabeth, you okay?" he asked. I nodded my head.

"Tired. Need sleep. Thalia. Snore." I mumbled in incoherent sentences. Percy laughed slightly.

"Yeah, I heard about that. Why didn't you go to Clarisse's room or something?"

"Yeah… she'll rip… my head… off."

"True." He nodded, "So, how you doing? We haven't talked much lately."

"We haven't talked at all." I corrected him and he reddened a little.

"Right. I don't like that."

"Yeah well, it's not like I have any other choice Percy. You don't expect me to forget everything you did to me, do you?" I snapped at him, my tired, cranky part winning over the part that was still in love with him. I couldn't afford myself to have any more outbursts, so I just gave him a look I hoped said 'I'm sorry' and stalked off. I was in desperate need of a coffee.

And of course, he knew that, just like he knew everything else about me.

"You wanna get some coffee?" he called out after me. I turned around slowly and just as I was about to say that I'd love to do that, Katie showed up.

"Hey Annabeth, you coming?" she raised her eyebrows at me. I looked Percy who was waiting for me.

"Yeah, I'm coming." I said and walked into the restaurant with Katie. I didn't look back, because I was afraid of the look he might have on his face. But that's silly, since I keep forgetting he doesn't care.

* * *

"Why didn't you go with him?!" Thalia screeched at me. I was just done telling her about my encounter with Percy, and all the girls that were at our table were still trying to soak everything in.

"I… I just couldn't." I admitted and shrugged my shoulders, throwing a blueberry in my mouth.

"Why did you guys break up in the first place? You were like my favorite couple, ever. No offense Thalia." Silena said while she played with her salad. I mean, a salad for breakfast, who does that?

"None taken, trust me." Thalia said as she chewed on her eggs.

I shrugged, "It's complicated." I said as I looked at my blueberry pancakes. Piper, Katie, Juniper and Silena were all looking at intently like they might burst if I didn't tell them. Eventually I caved in, I couldn't stand the pressure.

After I finished my awfully clichéd story, Silena and Juniper had tears in their eyes.

"So you just… forgave him?" Piper asked, confused.

"Not really. I just let it go I guess. I think that if I held a grudge and constantly thought about it, I would lose more from it than I would win. It just wasn't worth it."

"It's been what? Two months since you found out?" Katie cocked her head.

"Yeah, two months and three days."

"You didn't deserve that Annabeth. Did he at least say he was sorry?" Juniper asked me sadly. I thought about it and felt incredibly mad when I realized he didn't. He never said he was sorry. Nico did, Thalia did, everyone else who had nothing to do with it did, only him, the biggest culprit, didn't.

"No… he didn't. Son of a—"

"Annabeth!" everyone collectively yelled at me, which caused everyone to turn around and look at us. I felt my cheeks flare up.

"Sorry." I mumbled as I lowered my head.

"Well I think he should." Silena announced and Thalia rolled her eyes.

"You think, Sherlock?"

"Okay, stop it. I will not get into any more fights because of Percy." I grumbled and played with the left over blueberries that were still rolling around my plate.

"Wait… Annabeth, are you still hung up on him?" Silena asked me and everyone started stir.

"English please?"

Katie sighed, "Are you still into him?"

"I… okay, if I tell you, it does not leave this table." I whispered to them. They all huddled up around me and waited impatiently for my answer.

"None of your business." I whispered tensely and Thalia burst out laughing. Silena rolled her eyes.

"Meanie." She huffed.

"I just can't tell you something I don't know!" I yelled and threw my hands up in the air.

"I think she still is." Juniper said.

"What? After everything he did to her? No way in hell!" Katie yelled. I just stared between them as they argued over something only I knew the answer to. Well, except Thalia, but she knew everything about me, so she doesn't count.

These girls had no idea how I really felt towards Seaweed Brain.

I was in our room, trying to make some order in it, when somebody knocked on the door. I didn't call for cleaning maids, because Chiron told us we weren't supposed to trash our rooms, yet I was still stuck with picking up pieces of the wall. The girls were all out, they all found an excuse not to do the cleaning part. Thalia ran off with Nico, Katie did the same thing with Travis, Silena went makeup shopping and Juniper was simply dragged out.

"Come in!" I yelled.

"Hey—what on earth happened in here?" Percy asked with surprise in his voice. I looked up at him and rolled my eyes.

"Silena. Clarisse."

"Gotcha. So… I wanted to ask you for a favor." He said after a long break.

"You're kidding, right?"

"No. Please?" he gave me his best version of puppy dog eyes. Fight it Annabeth, fight!

"Okay. What?" Damn, so much for fighting it.

"Put this on." He said and threw a piece of fabric at me. I picked it up and examined it closely.

"A blindfold? No way. Percy, don't you remember what we did to Thalia and Nico?" I asked him and he laughed.

"Yeah. But I promise I won't lock you up. You'll like this. Cross my heart and hope to die." He made a cross over his heart. I narrowed my eyes at him before I started to put my sneakers on.

"Trust me, if I don't, you will."

* * *

"Percy, where are we?" I groaned. For the last twenty minutes Percy dragged me with him. We took a cab to… God knows where. I couldn't see anything with the silk blindfold on my eyes.

"Okay, now be careful. We're going up the stairs, now! Step, step, step, step, step, step, st-"

"Are you done?!" I yelled at him.

"I was just helping. Dang." He said, offended.

"I'm taking this thing off. Now."

"Fine, we're here anyways." He said and I ripped the blindfold away from my eyes. I looked up and was left without any words. I was literally speechless.

"I—I can't believe this."

"Annabeth Chase, welcome to the Boston library." Percy announced proudly.

"Oh. My. God." I choked out. I stared at the magnificent building, trying to soak up all the little details, every scratch and line it had.

"Any facts?" Percy joked.

"This complex of libraries contains over twenty-four million of books."

"You mean, enough for your one month read?" he cocked his head at me and I whacked him with my hand.

"Shut up. Let's go!" I yelled and ran for the entrance. I heard Percy shouting something after me, but I didn't care. I just wanted to go inside and just… smell all those books.

When I walked in, the first thing I thought was 'Man, this is huge.' Not my brightest sentence, and definitely Percy-like, but I didn't mind. I was too stumped and way too dazed to think of anything smarter to say. The royal decorations, hundreds and thousands of books, huge tables with hundreds of people reading every book you could think of. From Dracula to Animal Alphabet.

Percy finally caught up with me and then stopped when he reached me.

"Man, this place is huge!" he exclaimed and I looked at him with wide eyes. "What?" he asked.

"No-nothing. Thank you for bringing me here."

"Well I know you were dying to come. I saw you checking out that map and you circled this place like fifty times." He laughed. The laughter soon died down to us staring at each other with slight smiles on our faces. Then he grabbed my arm and pulled me into one of the giant book rows.

"Hey look! The first edition of—" I started to say, but he cut me off.

"I'm sorry." He said all of a sudden.

"What?"

"About what I did to you. I never said I was sorry. I just wanted you to know I am. If I could, I would never make that bet. You don't deserve that and I'm sorry."

"Oh, wow." I said, at loss of words.

"And I know this apology comes two months late but I just want you to know that…"

"Why can't you just let go of it all? Of me?" I asked him with a slight frown. I honestly didn't understand, I thought he said he would give up.

"Because I'm… head over heels in love with a girl who hates me. And slaps me all the time. And can't look at me. The girl I hurt so much, but I never meant for it to happen. And she treats me like crap, but I'm okay with that, since I deserved it."

"You so did." I agreed.

"But I can't give up on you. You and I… that's it."

"Huh?"

"My mom told me that my dad, my real dad, was her 'it.' You know, that whole 'one and only' thing. You're my 'it'"

"You are such a poet." I told him with a grin.

"And you are mean."

"Am not."

"Are too.

"Am not Jackson!" I yelled at him in the heat of the moment.

"Are too Chase!" he yelled back.

"You are such an as—" I didn't get to finish my sentence, because at that moment he grabbed my face with his hand and crashed his lips on mine. At first, I was completely still. But in the next second, my hand went to his chest and his other one around my waist. The amazing scorching feeling I got when I kissed him was back, but this time stronger. The way his lips moved against mine was almost strong enough for me to throw him into one of the rows of books and not let him get out for long time.

The kiss was at the same time rough and gentle. It was most of all, hungry. Two months? Way too long. His lips were so hot against my surprisingly cold ones, and softer than I had ever imagined. He ran his tongue on my lower lip and I opened my mouth with a low moan. This kiss happened so many times in my head by now, but it was so much better now.

There was no more of that feeling in my stomach.

* * *

**And my life is finally complete now. Surprisingly, I kissed *cough*someone* cough* in a library as well, and it's really sweet, but kind of rebellious, just like these two idiots :)**

**And, good news, I started to write a new story! Of course it's Percabeth, because I can't imagine life without them. The story should be up... Hm... I think Friday. I have this thing I have to escape from on Thursday, a competition I don't wanna go on, and as soon as my mind is free of that, I'm putting it up! I'll let you know how it's called as soon as I think of a name.**

**See you my little sea turtles tomorrow!**


	30. Annabeth on a unicycle

**Read and Review**

* * *

"The library is my new favorite place in the world." Percy said after an hour and a half of heavy making out. I looked up at him from my book. After I managed to peel myself away from him, I almost dived into the books.

"Why?"

"Well, we became friends in a library. And now…"

"Shut up. I still can't believe I did that."

"I am so glad you did." He said and wiggled his eyebrows at me, which only made me blush more.

"I hate you."

"That's not what I heard you say half an hour ago." He remarked and smirked at me.

"Percy!"

"What?" he asked innocently and shrugged.

"I'm just surprised nobody saw us and got us kicked out."

"This place is big enough. I'm sure there are other teenagers way more turned on then us in this place." He said and went through some books with surprisingly many pictures.

"And I thought you would say something completely opposite of that."

"Like what?" he pushed himself off the wall and got near me. I could easily breathe in his sea-like scent. Nothing's changed, alright. He was still the same old Percy, except now he didn't hide anything from me.

"How about—" he cut me off with a kiss, again. I swear on my sanity that the kisses kept getting better and better. He put more gentleness in the way he held his arms around me, more roughness in the sole kiss and he pushed me against more things. This time, it was one of the book shelves.

And just when I really got into it, his phone rang.

"Damn it."

"Yeah, you didn't turn your phone off in the library." I mocked him and fixed my shirt that rose up.

"Hello? Oh yeah. Yes. What? Seriously? That's amazing! Thank you so much. Okay, yeah. Bye." I listened to his conversation, confused out of my mind. His responses were short and I couldn't really get a lot out of them.

"Who was that?" I asked him. I didn't mean to pry, but I was curious. Percy refused to look at me and I felt myself getting angry again.

"Perseus Jackson, tell me what you did, now." I almost growled out. Percy's face morphed into an awfully guilty look. "Oh no, not another bet?" I asked, dreading his answer. Percy's eyes widened and he ran to me.

"No! No more bets. I promised you that. But I did go behind your back." He admitted and I narroved my eyes at him.

"What did you do?"

"I… In the last two months, since you broke up with me, I've been… digging."

"Digging? Like, a hole?" I asked with a frown. Percy burst out laughing.

"No, not a hole. I mean, I've been snooping. Investigating. Searching for something."

I smiled and put my hands on my hips, "Would you look at my Sherlock Holmes… What did you search for?"

"Just promise me you won't get mad at me."

"Percy… What did you look for?" I asked, slowly approaching him while he backed away.

"Um… See… I looked and looked and pulled so many strings I can't even count and—"

"Just tell me what you did!" I exploded at him, and then clasped a hand on my mouth. I had to constantly remind myself I was in a library.

"I… I found your mom Annabeth. She's on her way to New York. She wants to meet you." He said and smiled warmly at me.

**Percy POV**

She was still for a few minutes. Like, I don't even think she was breathing. Looking straight ahead, she looked really creepy. I waved my hand in front of her face, and then snapped my fingers a few times.

"Annabeth?"

"I'm here."

"Not really. Are you okay? Did I do something wrong? You don't want to meet her, do you?" I groaned and grabbed my head. Hell, I was sure I hit the jackpot when I found her mom.

"NO! No, I'm dying to meet her. I… I just can't believe you did that for me."

"Of course I did. I would do so much more."

"How did you find her?" she asked me, with tears faintly making her eyes shine.

"I just looked through a few hospitals. She was easy to find in the end, she has a giant law firm on the west coast." I shrugged. Annabeth's eyes widened.

"Really? Did you talk to her?" she asked me excitedly.

"No. But you will, soon. She's landing in New York a day after we arrive." I smiled at her and she laughed happily.

"Thank you! Oh my God, I love you so much." She said and grinned widely at me. I grinned back at her, happy to finally hear her say it properly. She ran to me and jumped at me, and I barely had enough time to catch her and steady us so we don't stumble into the books.

"Whoa. That's good to know Wise Girl, because I love you too." She grinned at me.

"I have something to admit as well."

"Did you make a bet too?" I teased her and she punched me in the shoulder. Hard. "OW!"

"What? It's not like you didn't deserve that one. Anyway, what I wanted to say was… Did you, maybe, see your mom signing some papers?" I shook my head in confusion.

"No… why?"

"Well… I took advantage of you doing extra laps on your swimming practices, and went to talk to Sally. After some fighting and a lot of convincing… I talked her into filing for a divorce." She stopped and closed my eyes, waiting for my reaction.

"You did… what?"

Annabeth opened one of her eyes and squinted at me,"I convinced her to ask for divorce. I think it should be finalized by the time we finish this semester. Are you angry?"

"Angry? I'm not angry; I don't think I have ever loved you more than I do now." I told her and she flashed me a smile. I grabbed her in my arms and spun her around, while she tried to muffle her screams.

"Security to aisle six. Two teenagers making too much commotion." We heard some lady's voice over the intercom. Annabeth and I looked at each other in horror.

"Run!"

* * *

"That was so crazy." I yelled out. Annabeth and I sat on the stairs in front of the library.

"I have never been thrown out of a library. Strange feeling." She mumbled with an empty look on her face. I nudged her with my elbow.

"Come on, you'll survive! You and I have been thrown out in many other places. What's the difference?"

"It's a library." She shrugged and looked at me with a smile on her face.

"Yeah well, we should get back to the hotel anyway. Which way to do we go?" I asked her and she looked at me with wide eyes.

"How am I supposed to know that?! I had that dumb blindfold on the whole trip here!" she yelled and smacked me over the head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"For being a moron! Now how are we supposed to go back?"

"Don't worry, milady. I have GPS on my phone." I said proudly after the thought occurred to me.

"You get Wi-Fi here?"

"No, why?"

"Then how do you plan on getting service?" she asked me with a 'duh' look on her face.

"Uh… Okay, bad idea."

"No kidding Seaweed Brain."

**Annabeth POV**

"Let me go!" Rachel screeched once again when Percy and I walked through the door after finally finding our hotel. It took us six strangers and two maps of the city to get to here.

"What are you doing now?!" I yelled at the red head and the big angry girl that was chasing her.

"She is crazy, I swear to God!" Rachel yelled as she ducked behind an armchair. I could feel my temper rise, my blood start to boil. I walked to the center of the room and saw Thalia eating chips in front of the sleek LCD and the rest of my roommates doing each other's nails.

"SHUT. THE HELL. UP!" I screamed from the top of my lungs at them. "I don't care what you're fighting about, but you will take it outside."

"But—" Clarisse started to protest but I just gave her an evil eyes.

"Out. NOW." I growled.

"What's their deal?" Percy asked as he helped me pull up a table they turned over.

"They are crazy. That's their deal." I grumbled and Percy chuckled. Thalia looked up and the chip fell from her mouth when she saw Percy.

"Perce?"

"Hey Thals." He greeted her casually, but obviously Thalia looked into things too much. A big smirk crossed her features only to turn into a grin a second later.

"Shut up." She squeezed out and jumped out of the chair. She ran to the front door, opened it and yelled loudly.

"NICO! Pi alert!" she screamed. Percy and I looked at each other. Nico came after a few seconds with foam all over his head.

"Rabies attack eh, buddy?" Percy joked.

"What? Oh crap. Why did you do that to me?" he turned to his girlfriend who was trying not to laugh at him.

"I didn't know you were in the shower. But damn, am I happy I yelled." She grinned.

"TMI Thalia. TMI." I shook my head.

"Yeah, like the newly renewed Percabeth won't go there…" she smirked at us.

"What? I was in the shower for ten minutes! When the hell did that happen?!" Nico yelled and wiped some shampoo from his face. I looked sadly at my poor floor, now splashed with water that was dripping of Nico.

"We never said it did!" Percy and I yelled at the same time.

"Did it?" Nico asked.

"Yeah." I broke out in a grin.

"This is rich. I have material to cluck on you again!" Thalia yelled happily.

"Not this time. I have stuff on you too," I pointed discreetly at Nico, who was busy trying to wrap his towel more firmly around him. I heard Silena and Katie squeal in the next room.

"You have a second to shut up!" Thalia yelled. The squeals were gone the second words left her mouth. Thalia turned to me, "You have some explaining to do. And you two, get out." She pointed at the door.

"Fine by me. I feel molested." Nico grumbled which caused Percy to burst out laughing.

"I'd kiss you, but I'm a little scared." Percy jerked his head towards Thalia. She rolled her eyes.

"Fine... I'll turn around."

Percy grinned at me and planted a long kiss on my lips. I savored it for a second before Thalia cleared her throat impatiently and Percy left the room, while making faces at Thalia like a five year old.

Thalia turned around to face me, "Spill."

* * *

"I have a problem." Percy told me the second me saw me the next morning.

"What?"

"Luke." He frowned.

"Oh God. I completely forgot about that douche bag. What did he do now?" I asked Percy as we made our way to breakfast.

"He still wants us to declare a winner. Annabeth, if I refuse, he'll do whatever it takes to get me kicked out of school. Screw his car and humiliation, but I can't get kicked out of Goode!" he said in desperation.

"You won't. What do we do?"

"We?" he asked me with scrunched eyebrows.

"Yes Seaweed Brain. We're we now. As in, boyfriend and girlfriend. As in, me being your 'it'." I smiled at him.

"Okay. There's no other person I'd rather have my back, so let's go kick some douche bag butt." He smiled at me and threw his arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him.

"Well if it isn't our golden couple. Annabeth." Luke bowed to me and I realized he was mocking me.

"Can't I just kick him in his sensible spot right now so we can move on with our lives?" I turned to Percy who cracked a grin.

"I'd love that, but it's a little bit more complicated."

"Well Annabeth. What's your verdict for the jerk that lied to you and played you?" Luke smiled at me. Only by looking at him I realized he didn't know I got back together with Percy. I smirked to myself in my mind, I'm so gonna enjoy this.

"I dunno. How about you ask my boyfriend?"

"Wow. She already moved on from you Jackson. I guess you're not such a catch after all." He shrugged. Percy didn't even give him a second look; instead, he grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a kiss. I smiled into it and saw Luke's jaw drop from the corner of my eye.

"How—when did this happen?" he asked.

"It happened while you were being a butt brush." Thalia stood up from her table and walked over to us, followed by Nico, Jason, Piper, Leo and pretty much every person in our class that couldn't stand Luke.

"He wins Luke. You're out." Nico smirked. I think he was waiting all this time to say that.

"No, she didn't say it. She didn't say she is in love with him. The bet was that he had to get her to fall for him until the end of spring break, which is in a few days. So?" he looked at me with a burning fire in his eyes. But the bad kind of fire, the one that burns down everything that stands in its way.

"What makes you think you get to decide about things like that? Tell someone who to love and who to not. Who the hell do you think you are?!" I yelled the last part at him. "And for your information, with this bet you only screwed yourself up, because I do love Percy, and your ass better be gone when I go back to school the next week."

"You- you do?"

"Yes, I do. And you know what, if you aren't such a… how did you say it Thalia?"

"Butt brush." I nodded.

"Right. If you aren't such a butt brush, maybe somebody would love you too. But you know what? You don't know what love is Luke, you'll never know and you'll never have somebody to show you. In a way, I feel sorry for you." I shrugged at him.

"Wow." I heard Nico mumble.

"And by the way, we'll take the car keys now." I smirked at him and Nico, Thalia and the rest of the gang burst out in laughter.

"I…"

"That's the bet dude." Nico said. I held out my arm.

"C'mon. Drop them really slowly, I wanna enjoy this." I nodded and sighed. Soon I felt him drop a heavy key in my hand. I opened one of my eyes and saw a shiny key with a Lamborghini pendant.

"And the spare one. But you'll give me that when we get back to New York." I nodded. I ran my finger along the lines of the key before I turned around and tossed it to Percy.

"You did it. You won." I smiled. He looked at me with wide eyes. By this point, the entire hall was looking at us and listening intently. Percy was quiet for a few seconds and just stared at the key in his hand. Then, he stepped forward and stuck his hand out.

"Take it." He said to Luke, "I don't want it anymore. I've won something way better than a car in this bet." He said and looked at me. Luke didn't say anything; he just accepted the key and quickly made his way out of the room. I stared at Percy in shock.

"Why did you just do that?!" I yelled at him. Didn't he know he rode my ass for five months to get that stupid thing? I wanted to shoot him.

Percy shrugged and wrapped his hands around me. "Eh, I realized way back there are things more important that having a car." I frowned.

"I would have looked so good in that car." I said sadly, at which Percy laughed.

"Annabeth, we live in New York City. We'd never have the chance to enjoy it. It's so much easier to look good in a cab." He laughed.

I looked at him and cracked a grin, "You're right."

"And besides, you don't need a car to look good. Trust me." He said and his comment made me blush.

"Shut up Percy."

"But I'm serious! If I were to see you wearing newspapers on a unicycle, I would still think you're the most beautiful girl in the world." He said. I heard Thalia make a gagging sound in the background.

"Well then, I'll have to buy some newspapers and a unicycle. By the way, did you know that the unicycle was invented during the late nineteenth century, because its inventor—

"No Annabeth, of course I didn't. How about you tell me about it while I eat something? Because I'm afraid I might die by the time you're done." Percy joked and pulled me towards our table.

"Hey!"

"I'm kidding Wise Girl. You know I love you."

* * *

**It's... over? It can't be. But it is. Damn it. I think I'm crying. *sniff***

**Do you want an epilogue? Because if yes, I'll upload one tomorrow. **

**Considering this is technically the last chapter of Better Than Revenge, I found it my duty to tell you two things I have been keeping from you all, since you've all been so nice to me in your reviews. Plus you're always asking me to tell them.**

**First, my name is Alexandria. See? It sucks. It's too long and I don't like it! You can call me Al, Alex, Lex, Leo calls me Lexi sometimes... whatever you like, I'll go for anything. **

**Second, to be completely honest with you, I'll admit that I don't look at Leo as just my friend... But it's a one-sided feeling obviously, so it doesn't matter. **

**I'm so embarrassed right now ****that I think I'll go and jump into Tartarus, to play cards with Annabeth and Percy.**

**I love you all. See you tomorrow :D**


	31. Better Than Revenge

**Read and Review**

* * *

"I'm nervous." I said as I tapped my foot on the floor like a maniac. I'm surprised it hasn't caught on fire by now.

Percy huffed and rolled his eyes, "Can you stop?"

"Do you want me to kick you, Jackson?" I retorted, fully pissed off by now. He knows I'm so nervous my hair's about to fall off, yet he still bugs me.

Percy turned in his seat to face me, "Annabeth, I think you have so much adrenaline coursing thorough your body right now, that you could lift a bus. Everything will be fine, don't worry." he said in a gentle tone.

"But what is she doesn't like me?" I whined. Percy took my hands into his'.

"She's gonna love you. All you have to do is be you."

"How do I know that's going to work?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"It got me to go crazy over you." he offered with a small smile.

"That doesn't really help me." I teased him. Percy let out a breath, obviously giving up, and slouched in his seat. I didn't tell him I thought it was really sweet of him to come with me to the airport, to meet my mom. He actually seemed excited himself.

My mom's flight was coming in late though. It was supposed to be here around seven, but it was already past eleven. I noticed Percy's eyes were starting to slowly descend, and it only made me appreciate him coming with me more. He was dead tired, but still here with me.

I was racking my brain, trying to come up with smart, interesting things to say to her when I saw her, that would actually make her think, "Wow, this girl is my daughter." It proved to be harder than I thought. All I could come up with were facts about the JFK airport and how the french fries in the nearby restaurant taste like soap and feet.

I was deep in thought, mentally abusing myself, when I heard someone clear their throat. I looked up in my seat and saw a tall woman, very pretty with grey eyes and blonde hair just like mine, stare at me. She had a very tough-to-crack look on her face and I instantly felt my gut drop. Oh my God, my mom won't like me.

But every doubt went away when she smiled at me. It's like a ray of Sun after days of rain. Her face broke out in a huge smile and she walked over to me. I got up, and just stared at her. I couldn't do anything else, not even return the smile.

"Annabeth?" she asked, uncertain.

"I imagined this so many times in my head." I stated, my voice cracking once. She smiled at me and nodded.

"So did I Annabeth. So did I." she took a lock of my hair and ran her fingers through it, almost as if she wasn't sure I was really there. She didn't know I didn't want to be anywhere else.

I was just about to hug her, when a huge, kind of gross, snore came from Percy. I turned around and saw him sprawled over two chairs, his mouth open and a little drool coming out.

"That's... Percy? The boy that called me here?" my mom asked, looking at him with an amused look on her face and raised eyebrows.

"Uh... yeah."

"That's quite the boyfriend, Annabeth." she said, though I don't think it sounded like a good thing. But when I turned around she was smiling.

I nodded and looked at Percy again, who wanted to turn around but instead fell of the chairs. He jolted up and looked around in a hurry. "Yeah, I'm so proud of him."

* * *

"Annabeth! Time to get up!" I faintly heard Susan yell through my sleep. I opened one eye first, just to check the weather. I always first checked to see if it was sunny outside. If yes, then I got up. If no, I'd lay for a few more minutes.

Luckily for me, the sun was up when I opened my left eye. I smiled to myself as I pulled the covers off my body. I made my way to the bathroom, and looked at myself in the mirror. I haven't changed much in the last few months. The only thing different was my hair, much longer and lighter from spending a big part of my summer on the beach. My family and I went with Percy and his mom to this beach house in Montauk.

I thought about what my life was like a year ago. I was depressed and honestly freaked out about going to school, dreading it, in fact. Mostly because Percy was there and he always had a way of making my life a living hell.

Now, I couldn't wait to get to school.

"First day of school. Who's a junior?" Susan smiled at me when I sat down on the kitchen stool.

"Ugh, don't remind me."

"Oh, come on! Life's not so bad now, is it? You have Thalia, Percy, Nico, Jason, Piper, Leo, Connor, Travis—

"Okay, Susie, I get it, I have a lot of them." I called her by her new nickname. I have gotten a lot closer with Susan over the last few months. I realized she wasn't as bad as I made her look like in my head. Of course, things were different now. I wasn't so bitter anymore. I met my mom, and we got so close she even bought an apartment in New York so she could come and be with me when she had some time off.

I heard someone honk outside, "Speaking of Thalia… I have to go. See you tomorrow!" I yelled.

"Whoa, whoa. Tomorrow?"

"Yeah. School until three and then I'm going to Percy's house. After that we're going to that first day of school thing."

"With the fireworks?" she cocked her head at me.

"Yeah."

"Well okay then. Stay smart!" she yelled as I opened the door, "Make good decisions!" she screamed after me and I rolled my eyes.

"Yo, yo." Thalia said as I jumped in the car.

"Can you step on it?" I asked her in a hurry.

"Ooooh, is little Annie excited to see her boyfriend?" Thalia drawled out and hit me with her elbow repeatedly. It was surprisingly annoying.

"How long did it take you to get ready this morning?" I shot back at her with a smirk. Thalia looked at the road and started the car.

"Five minutes." She mumbled.

"What?" I pretended not to hear.

"Five minutes, okay?! Jeez, can't I be excited to see someone as well?"

"I still can't believe Nico spent the whole August with his dad in Los Angeles." I shook my head. I was so surprised when he told us. He said his dad is finally making some effort and that he would give him a chance. He came back two days ago, but because of all the school stuff, I didn't get to see him. I missed his little emo butt so much.

"Tell me about it." Thalia grumbled.

* * *

"And how are you doing?" Percy purred in my ear. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me towards him, too bad I was facing him with my back.

"Didn't you ask me that two days ago?" I asked him, turned around in his hands and arched an eyebrow. Percy flashed a smile at me.

"Actually, two days, seven hours and… twenty three minutes ago."

"You counted minutes?" I asked him.

"No. I just blurted it out."

"Idiot. Have you seen Nico yet?"

"No. He should be arriving any second now. I talked to him yesterday; he told me he was missing Thalia like crazy." He smiled at me.

"Well he better. They've been together for what? Seven months?"

"Actually, that's seven months, two days and one hour." Nico piped up from behind us. I turned around and a grin spread over my face when I saw him and Thalia standing there, both with wide smirks on their faces.

"Nico!" I yelled and threw myself at him, pulling him into a bone crushing hug.

"Hey Blondie. Okay… Annabeth… I need oxygen." He squeezed out.

"I don't care." I said and Nico laughed. In the end he gave up on fighting and wrapped his hands around me. "World isn't as sardonic as I'm used to without you." I mumbled.

"Hey that rhymed." Percy grinned. Thalia bumped him with her elbow and he flicked her on the head.

"You did not just do that." She raised an eyebrow at him.

"No! I'm sorry!" he yelled and raised his hands up.

"Well, I hate to break up one of the moments in which we can see Nico is, in fact, a human, but we have to get to class." Jason said and we all turned around to look at him. "What? Not like it isn't true or anything." He shrugged.

"Hey, that's my not-human you're talking about." Thalia said threateningly.

"Sorry sis. Can we just go now? I'm starting to fear for my life." Jason said and scratched the back of his head.

"You should."

* * *

"And how are you ladies enjoying yourselves?" Connor asked us. He was smirking widely, because he saw that Nico, Jason and Percy were sitting beside Thalia, Piper and I. Percy rolled his eyes, Jason raised his eyebrows and Nico flat-out ignored him.

"This is awesome Connor. How is it that you and Travis arranged all of this?"I asked him and took a sip of my coke.

"Our dad always brings us a ton of fireworks. We have so much we even made some pictures we're going to show."

"Like a slideshow?"

"Exactly. It should start in… now! Oh, crap. Travis! Don't you dare light those fireworks without me!" he yelled and ran off. We were currently on top of Connor and Travis' house. They begged his dad to put in a flat roof for them, so they could have parties like this.

"It's starting!" we soon heard Travis shout. All of us got up and walked to the edge.

"Five, four, three, two, one!" everyone counted off. With a loud bang, the fireworks started to fill the sky. It's a good thing Travis and Connor had a giant backyard in which they could light them, otherwise they could be looking at some jail time.

"Wow." Thalia said, amazed. Their little show just started, and it was already spectacular. Thousands of little dots, filling the dark sky, lighting up the whole block. There was so many colors and shapes, I was afraid I might get an epileptic attack.

We saw a few pictures of Connor and Travis, doing crazy stunts. Then they showed Mr. D and Chiron, playing cards. And then, the best thing of all, the sky filled with pictures of members of our class. It went alphabetically, so I was up pretty quickly after Nico's picture rolled around. I liked my picture, though it made me blush and turn my head around. Percy chuckled at this; he just wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on my shoulders.

We saw Thalia pretty soon as well, though she wasn't as shy as I was. She smirked widely and shouted at Connor.

"Lucky for you, you chose a good picture; otherwise you would have been up there, blowing up as well!" she yelled and everyone started to laugh.

"You looked pretty," Percy hummed in my ear. I whacked him with my arm and wriggled out of his grasp, only to have him pull me towards him again.

"Percy." I whined.

"Stop being such a baby, I only said you looked pretty." He mocked me again. "Hey, did you know that tomorrow's our six month anniversary?" he suddenly asked me and I looked at him with wide eyes.

"You remembered?"

"Well yeah… "What, was I not supposed to?" he asked, confused.

I shook my head and my curls flew around it, "No! I didn't mean that. I'm just… surprised you remembered."

"Why shouldn't I remember the day you finally forgave me?" he said. We rarely talked about the bet these days; it was a thing in the past. But sometimes I got paranoid, and started to look into everything he said or did.

"I forgave you way before that day, I only didn't tell you." I smiled at him. I looked into his eyes, so green, so big and round and staring at me. They were happy and light, with little crinkles on the sides. They also had that infamous sparkle to them, which always reminded me I shouldn't be paranoid. Even if something popped up, we would somehow wriggle our way out of it, because that's what we do.

"That's good, because I loved you way before that day." He said.

"Hm… I can't say the same thing." I played with my hair and teased him. He had an indifferent look on his face before he started to tickle me, and I burst out laughing like maniac.

"Percy, stop it!" I yelled through my hysterical laughter.

"No, say you love me!" he yelled at me and continued to tickle me.

"I… I love you! Stop it now!" I yelled and he stopped tickling me.

"What was that?" he pressed his hand to his ear.

I rolled my eyes at him, "I love you."

"That's all I wanted to hear." He said and pressed his lips on mine.

As I kissed him, I thought about us and where we stood. He was definitely a plan for the future for me, because there was no way I could go through life without him in it. He was like air, too important for me to live without. I thought about college and what we could be after it.

And in the end, I thought about the bet. The pain I felt when I found out disappeared and was completely replaced by happiness, which was, ironically, caused by Percy once again. It occurred to me more than once to just move on, because sometimes the pressure of it all was just too great. But then, I would picture his eyes in my head, and the way he smelled, and all of it just faded away.

Love is a weird feeling. It causes you to smile for no reason at one second, then frown at the next. In my case, the easiest way to describe it is a rollercoaster. Ups and downs, turns and twist, but the feeling is still amazing, no matter what.

So I was proud of myself. In spite of all the pain he caused me, I still managed to forgive him. Because love isn't just about forgiving and being forgiven, it's about creating the balance between the two.

And that's why I forgave Percy, because in the end, no matter how crazy he was, or how much times I responded to his jabs with punches, or how crappy our story got, love was, is, and always will be, better than revenge.

* * *

**Do you have any idea how awesome you guys are?**

**So there I was, sitting with my family around the table, eating breakfast, when my phone went crazy. I'm talking about five minutes of consecutive ringing and bleeping. Those were all my e-mails from you guys. Over fifty-five reviews, eleven PM's and a few subscriptions and favorites.**

**I laughed my ass on some of them. Like, in one PM *someone* wrote how to name my and Leo's future children. I was rolling on the floor while reading that one.**

**And now everything got deleted. HOLY MOTHER OF PERCY I'M GONNA THROW THIS LAPTOP OUT THE WINDOW. I just spend the last half an hour on writing names of everyone that reviewed and now... gone. I think I'm gonna go dunk my head in my sink.**

***sigh* there's no way I'm doing it again, so I'm gonna write out reviewers from the last ten chapters. If your name isn't on the list I'm honestly sorry, but I love you and you rock nevertheless!**

**megameghamango**

**leathersilk**

**alexhermann48**

**August1999**

**Jacqueline Jackson**

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**allen r**

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**MPamelA**

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**MegJackson**

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**Alexandra Jackson rocks Hades**

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**bookworm2609**

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**Holy Hades guys, where do you come up with these usernames? It took me a few minutes to write some of them xD Hahahah I love you guys so much. I had a lot of fun writing this story and it was a big honor to meet some of you. I even made some friends :) Anyway, I should post my new story soon, so when I do, I hope you'll like it. **

**Peace, chicken and monkey footprints. I LOVE YOU CRAZY OWLS! :DDDDD**

**All the pringle ladies, all the pringle ladies, now put your hands up!**


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